Crossing the Rubicon
by Dresner1817
Summary: Sequel to Dawn- Trapped in a strange parallel world, Karl and Ben Ravencroft travel across the vast land in search of a portal that will take them home. While the Hex girls search for Luna as she searches for the mysterious woman who saved them from the Amsel Manor… Will Ben and Karl return home? Will the girls find Luna? Or will another nightmare become reality?
1. Chapter 1: Chasing Shadows

_**Alright everyone, CR (Crossing the Rubicon) will be shift between the story of Ben and Karl's travels along with show casing the story of Luna as she searches for answers about Claudia's past and how help Karl come home to the mortal world. **_

_**I figure that since Luna is usually given the short end of the stick, as they say, in both the show and in Fanfics I will give the Luna fans what they desire. Along with expanding on Thorn and Dusk a little. Please review or PM me for your input.**_

_**I Complete reorganized the story so if my little posts before the story do not add up its because of my update!**_

_**Enjoy :)**_

_**With Love ~Dresner **_

* * *

Dusk looked down the red clay road again with a wicked smile as the faint green glow of the Amsel manor could still be seen through the thick brush of the tree line. Her sister Luna was still weak from her possession by darkness that was Cyrus Amsel and held onto Dusk's back for the majority of the journey from the remains of that hellish manor. The smile soon changed to faint grin as she remembered the ghostly figure of her lover as he disappeared into twilight with a kind smile.

"Live to Forget, Muffy , Live to Forget." Claudia said to her. Claudia Marlin was a strange and secretive woman of about a youthful thirty or forty with looks that almost mirrored Thorn, but with worn and hard gaze that have seen their share of hell through out the years. She stood with a confident and aggressive stance of a fighter that Dusk silently respected and admired.

Who wouldn't? She saved Luna from the darkness and helped her and the gang find Karl after all.

Claudia wore a tattered flannel shirt with blood stained and ripped blue jeans, all damaged because of the journey toward the manor and the battle with in its hellish walls against the darkness. Her raven black hair was still perfectly flat and her pale face was spotless when compared to the rest of her body. With thorn drooped over her shoulders, Dusk could see the resemblance between Claudia and Sally more clearly and was surprised when she finally put two and two together.

Claudia saw the surprised look on the face of the drummer and quickly grabbed her by the arm, "Say nothing to anyone about this or my identity or else the fires of hell itself will insure your silence, Understand?" She hissed. Dusk jerked herself free from Claudia's grip, enraged that she of all people would dare touch her in anger. "What that your Thorn's..."

Claudia's other hand gripped her face tightly and soon Dusk blacked out. Claudia caught the drummer before she hit the ground and carried the Hex girls to their tour bus where she was greeted by a sleeping James with his truckers cap coving his eyes.

"Pathetic." She said as she glanced over at the driver.

Besides the snoozing driver, Claudia was rather impressed of the life her daughter and her newly adopted sisters had made for themselves. Touring state to state, coast to coast, and even across the world preforming to crowds of thousands of fans every night and day. They were know worldwide by millions and their fame was nearly that of the rock gods Ozzy, Hendrix, or even that of KISS. Yet they still retained their respectability and love for one another and even their sisterhood. Walking through the tour bus was like touring the home of Vincent Van Ghoul, whom she knew personally, with the gothic decor but with a Wiccan and pagan flare that set it apart from the Van Ghoul manor home.

Claudia smiled to see that the apple had not fallen far from the tree, as they say. Taking the girls back to their beds she tucked them in kindly and kissed them each on the forehead like a loving mother to her children. Before she could leave them, she whispered into the ears of Thorn and Dusk.

"He'll return Muffy, He will. Live for him and live for each other. Enjoy your life... Always remember why you fell in love with him and why he fell in love with you." She whispered to Dusk as she slept soundly in the warmth of Karl's leather jacket rapped tightly around her.

"Sally... I'm sorry... I'm so so so sorry..." Claudia began to sob as the shame of abandoning her daughter came to the surface. "I love you more than anything and I wish I could have been their for you... I wish I could have saved you from the hell of that asylum... Remember that I will always be with you..." Wiping the tears from her eyes, Claudia covered her daughter with a red blanket and kissed her on the forehead before leaving them.

"She's just like me in every way." Claudia sighed as she picked up a picture of Thorn with her sisters as they posed with the Mayor of Oakhaven, Willard Mcknight, The gang, and Karl on the night of the autumn fest.

"No... I can't get attached... They'll find them, just like he did long ago." She said to herself harshly as she placed the picture down on the table before shutting the door behind her. She came across another photo with only Thorn present and took it for a more current version of her beautiful daughter to replace the old photo of her and a five year old Thorn dressed in red. Folding the photo carefully into her pocket, she placed the old photo in the frame to replace the one she took.

"Maybe this will help you remember..." She said before walking out of bus and into the shadows of before the approaching Dawn.

Luna watched from the window of the bus as Claudia walked mysteriously into the shadows. She felt something was miss from her, like something was stolen from her mind and soul. Luna became depressed and sallow as she could feel the emptiness inside of her. Stripped was the only word she could use to described her state of mind, body, and soul. Luna was angry and jumped to her feet to pursue Claudia, but soon found herself clinging on to whatever should to keep herself up. "Damn it!" She cursed as the head rush caused her to lose her balance and knocked down a few of her own trinkets from their world tour. Catching herself, Luna ran out of the tour bus and into the shadows after the Gipsy woman.

For over an hour Luna searched the forest for Claudia and turned up empty handed. Disappointed with herself, she began to wonder back to her tour bus downtrodden and defeated. Burning with anger, Luna threw spiteful punch at a near by tree and screamed bloody murder at the pain in her hands and wrists from the blows.

"Why!? Why can't I remember anything! That bitch did this to me!" She wailed as she gripped her hands in pain. Luna threw herself to her knees and threw her fists against the soft ground in a tantrum screaming louder and louder until finally her voice began to crack and cough.

"You don't remember because you were not in control." Claudia said as she stepped out of the shadows as the first signs of light began to pierce through the brush. "Here take this," Claudia threw her a bottle of cold water. "With all of that scream you could have damaged your vocal cords. I'm surprised that your role as the opening act for Amsel's opening didn't damage them first. At least we both know that you haven't lost your ability to speak." She said as she pulled another bottle of spring water for herself.

"Wait... What are you talking about? What opening act?" Luna asked Claudia as she sat next to her on the ground. Claudia gave a sigh and shook her head from side to side, "Darling, you were used by Cyrus Amsel for his own purpose. That purpose being the opening of the gate to the spirt world. Luckily you had yours truly here to save you from him." Claudia told her as she finished her water. Luna placed her water at her side and closed her eyes in hope of recovering some of her distorted memories from last night, but to no avail. "I don't remember anything... I... I only remember walking into the house and everything goes blank." Luna said regretfully. "That was the dark hand of Cyrus Amsel honey, but their is no need to fret. Cyrus is long gone... Thanks to your rival if I'm not mistaken."

"Karl..." Luna whispered. "Is he all right? I didn't see him when I woke up... Is he..."

"Dead? No, my dear, he is alive and well. Thank the gods he is." Claudia interjected.

"He... He is?" A faint sigh of relief released Luna's tension. "Yes, my dear, He's still alive. Coming home though is a different story." Claudia told her as she took to her feet. "When your song was interrupted it led to the portal becoming a one way journey to The Summerland. Wether or not makes it home is questionable..." Claudia broke off at mid sentence and began to walk slowly away from Luna.

"Claudia!" Luna shouted to her. "How do you know all of this?"

Claudia didn't respond and continued on as the sunlight broke through the Clear skies above.


	2. Chapter 2: Rabbit

_**Its been a couple of days since I updated and their is a reason why. My Internet is bad again so right now I find myself in a Starbucks posting this. Great coffee, but expensive! **_

_**So Riley Chapter 3 here will some what answer your question, Remember we are still early in CR so all will be reviled in time. Please review :)**_

_**With Love ~Dresner**_

* * *

Four months have past since Karl threw himself into the portal with Amsel. The Hex girls continued the rest of their tour across America like nothing had happened, But still waters run deep. The swamp changed them and the fans themselves could almost see it in their eyes and hear it in their voices. The canceled show in Baton Rouge gave way to a make up concert in New Orleans showed a new side of the Hex girls as their new song "It's a mystery" made its debut. The fans remarked after the show to MTV corespondent, Kevin Lee, about the over all tone shift.

"Like, Thorn was all like. Different, you know?" One fan told them. "

"When she would sing she sing confidently and cheerfully, but when that new song came on it was like all three of them poured their souls, hearts, and dreams out on stage." Another remarked.

More and more interviews came to the same conclusion, The sound had changed and so have the Hex girls. After a long tour, coming home didn't sound to bad to the now internationally acclaimed rockstars. Even if it was to a little town like Oakhaven.

* * *

Dusk laid on her bed twirling her now large, blooming, ponytails and humming the melody to We do Voodoo with a sleepy little smile on her face as her sister, Luna, took the bathroom for her own. Outside in the shed was her other sister, Thorn, doing her usual ritual with peppermint and cloves to sooth her vocal cords. Fritz, The girls ghost white German Shepard, jumped on her bed and laid his head down on her stomach.

Dusk giggled and began to pet her loving white hound, "I've missed you." She said to Fritz as he tried to lick her hand with his long pink tongue. Fritz was six months old in dog years, but his size suggested other wise. His tail was curled into a question mark like a Keeshond and appeared to be smiling when he would pant.

"I bet Karl would've loved to meet you, baby dog." She said with a giggle as Fritz licked her face. Dusk looked outside at the beauty of a New England summer with lush greenery and endless blue skies.

"Hmmm, How about a walk boy?" She said, sitting up from the bed as Fritz poked his ears into the air and barked with glee. Throwing her legs over the bed and threw on her boots quickly, but found her eyes drawn to her night stand. On the nightstand a picture of her and Karl the night they met.

Dusk smiles when she sees the picture, "I'll be waiting Klokateer." She said with a smile as she and Fritz walked of the room and down the stairs.

* * *

Luna cracked the bathroom door and peered around the corner. She listened as Dusk's boots and Fritz claws click-clacked against the wooden floors of their Victorian home.

"Finally." She sighed as she stepped out into the room and looked into the mirror near the wall. Luna had spend almost half of the day trying out a new hair styles to change up her appearance. Luna managed agree with herself that a modified version of her original hairstyle would suffice, but lowered around her face predominately covering her left side. The look of her hair resembled that of a weeping willow, match her now quiet and melancholy demeanor.

Flipping her hair and trying out a couple of poses with her new hair style, Luna finally gave a warm laugh, something that she hasn't been able to do in months, and a smile. The Amsel affair, as called it, took a tole on her spiritually. A tole that robbed her of her remaining innocents...

Luna was always the 'Light in the Black,' a Beacon of hope and the glue that seemed to hold the band together. Always calm and sweet to everyone in her own way, unless you touched her keyboard of course. Walking into that swamp though... Going into that manor, into that hall of darkness, corrupted her. Luna was never selfish or self serving in anyway and always loyal to her sisters and the band. Even in front of mystery Inc. or Karl, of all people, she still remained the calm and caring person that she was.

But the swamp drew out the negative energy out of her and broke the surface of her warm appearance. It seemed to start with a simple thought and then everything became blurry. She remembers nothing besides the time they got to the manor and waking up at the tour bus in a daze. From what Claudia told her in the Forrest, She 'wasn't in control.'

Her face turned grim as she remembered sitting beside Claudia as she told of her possession by Amsel. A sharp pain broke through her train of thought as bits and pieces of a nightmare rushed past her eyes. Visions of pain, Visions of betrayal, Visions of hate raced threw her memory in waves, yet nothing made any sense to her. The events of the nightmare were vague, while some were foreign and frightening.

Luna openned her eyes and found herself gasping for dear life as the adrenaline and fear raced threw her body. She found herself laying on the ground with her face pressed firmly against the carpet of room her and her sister shared since they first came to live with Mr. Willard McKnight over a decade ago. Luna threw her gloved hands over her heart and panted heavily as she tried desperately to recall the visions, but to no avail.

"Kimberly are you all right?" Mr. Mcknight said urgently as ran down the hallway from his room and looked threw the doorway to see Luna laying on the floor gasping in fear. "Kimberly?" Mr. McKnight asked her as he came to her aid.

Willard Mcknight was an older gentleman in his late forties or even his mid fifties with grey timber wolf colored hair clad in a doctors coat. Mr. McKnight made his dollar as the town pharmacist and selling T-shirts for extra cash to capitalize on the tourism that Oakhaven received for being the home of the Hex Girls and a monstrous turkey, made by the 'loving' hands of Sarah Ravencroft. Willard was an honest man with kind and loving heart that seemed to have an endless amount of good stowed with in his old, but strong, frame. Mr. Mcknight had one daughter, Sally 'Thorn' Mcknight, but adopted Luna and Dusk because of the status of their parents. Even though they were not of his own stock, he loved every one of them like they were his blood daughters.

"Yeah Dad, just a little... Ahhugh! Migraine." Luna shrugged as another spike hit her again. Luna and Thorn were the only ones to call Dad, but Dusk was coming around to it. With Karl she was opening up more and more as time went on, now with Karl out of the picture she still retained that openness but with a lighter tone of meanness for safety.

"Honey, that fall of yours wasn't because of a headache and I know it. Whats going on with you Kimberly? Are you feeling all right?" He asked as he picked Luna off the carpet and set her down on Dusk's bed. Luna gave a sad sigh and brushed her hair away from her eyes. "I'm just... Just a little depressed Dad, Its about the whole losing Karl thing and all the other weird stuff." Luna said as she tried to cover up the episode on the floor like it was nothing. "Kim, I'm not the one to believe in all the witchcraft and hocus pocus stuff, but after the whole ordeal with Sarah and Ben I'm willing to believe anything honestly." Mr. Mcknight explained.

"Dad, the thing is I barley know anything about what happen! Same deal with Thorn and Dusk." Luna explained. "Claudia told me the rest of..."

"Marlin? Claudia Marlin?" McKnight interjected.

Luna nodded, "Yeah... How did you know her last name?" Luna questioned her surrogate father. Willard's face grew pale and his eyes began to scan left to right nervously.

"She... She and..." Willard stuttered as eyes of his surrogate daughter waited for answer. "Nothing, Its... Nothing." Willard shook it of and began to walk to the door with a look of shame on his face. With one last smile he turned to Luna who sat on the green comforter of Dusk's bed with a confused look.

"Your hair looks beautiful Kimberly, It really brings out your eyes." He told her. "I have to go see the mayor after work today, so I'll be late tonight. You girls are in charge now and you know what that means?"

"Want me to keep Dusk and Sally from killing each other?" Luna asked with a warm smile.

Willard chuckled, "Indeed, Be good dear."

The sound of loafers against the wooden stairs signaled he was going to speak with the mayor first. 'Who in their right mind would wear those things any where else?' Luna thought to herself as the squeaking of the leather loafers made her gag. The front door slammed shut and again Luna found herself without an answer to her question. Another question came to mind as well, Who was Claudia Marlin and how did Willard know about her?

Luna put on her purple boots and walked down the stairs to the kitchen where she made herself a cup of coffee, the same brand of caribou blend that Karl and Dusk would have killed her over if they were here.

Enjoying the coffee brought nostalgic memories of their cross country tour when Karl was still among them. The aroma of the Caribou day blend would fill the bus when Karl and Dusk finally woke up from their slumber. They would cuddle up against one another and share a cup while Thorn would give James a good morning kiss on the cheek. She remembers fond memories of when it was just her and Karl one on one. He was kind to her, but never missed a single moment to poke fun at her. Nor did she ever miss a moment to return the favor.

The sound of an open window caught her attention to living room, "Ugh, Who left the window open?" She asked herself out loud as she put down the coffee mug and waltz over to the living room. She looked around the large living room and preceded to close one of the large windows that stood beside fireplace.

Closing the window, Luna turned around and saw an envelope laying on the coffee table. She openned it and pulled out a hand written letter.

* * *

Dear Kimberly "Luna" Moss,

I see you girls have recovered rather quickly since the Amsel incident with the exception of yourself. Your memories of your role in the incident will not be recover so easily as the power of Madam Marlin is far greater than anything Ravencroft, Dael, your sisters, or yourself could possibly comprehend. If you wish to shed your ignorance on the situation, search the records of Oakhaven High School. There is where you will start your journey, Kimberly. If you wish to stay a rabbit for the rest of your life, then burn this letter with his lighter and forget everything that your have seen and read today.

With Love, Whitetail.

PS. This is your struggle, Luna, Keep your sisters in the Dark about this. It's your turn Rabbit.

* * *

Luna stared at the letter with wide eyes as she contemplated her options. Would she embark on a quest for answers or would she give up?


	3. Chapter 3: Passage

_**It's been awhile, I know, since I updated and it is because I want to make this chapter good so I rewrote it a couple of times to make sure it was good. There are references to the stories ****Sanctuary by Hiddenwitch890 and Badlands Rock Concert by Grumpydrawer. Please check out their stories and review them, I know they will love to here from a reader :)**_

_******Along with this the Luna side of the story comes to surface, Enjoy.**_

_******With Love, ~Dresner**_

* * *

Luna's high heeled boots clicked the against the white tile floor as she enter of Oakhaven high school. The school itself was built during the 1970s and constantly renovated through its life to include a courtyard, sky lights, and even a working Wifi, A luxury that Luna hoped they would have had on their junior year before they began their first tour around the country and began online classes to get their Diplomas. The school itself was like every other with long, almost endless, hallways lit with buzzing Florissant lights and various, rather frivolous, motivational posters dotting the concert walls along with occasional blown up photos of the sports teams and a limited amount of academic clubs as well. Above her was a large banner forgotten by the facility that read, "Home of the Oakhaven Wild Hawks."

Luna shook her head as she read the sigh as the fond and the unpleasant memories of her and her sisters history here began to come back to her. They were the outcasts, the losers, The 'Broken Toys' as one drama student put it before Dusk cracked his jaw. She gave a small nostalgic grin as she remembered the day Dusk came back to school the next day and brought her and Thorn lunch, all while sneaking past the teachers and their little preppy teachers pets. Luna and the girls were not bullied as much people would believe, maybe by the popular preppy girls, or barbie dolls as she would call them. But other than the small cliche of barbie dolls, everyone either like them for their personalities or stayed the hell away in fear of Dusk cutting their throat out or beating them to a pulp. The girls never cared who hated them, all they cared for was that their band would become number one.

"Now Luna," The old gray haired janitor said. "Make sure you lock up after your little report here. I don't want Principal Covington on my tail about this school being unlocked again. Especially after what happened last year!"

"Dusk isn't going to hide smoke bombs in the bathrooms again, She's straighten out since she met Karl..." Luna stopped herself after she said his name and only nodded to the grey head janitor. "No problem Lance, I'll lock up for you... Thanks again." She told him. The old janitor nodded and walked out the door. The door slammed shut and echoed through the halls around her. She pulled the note from someone named whitetail and took a heavy breath as she looked over it once more. Was she making the right choice?

"I have to find out what happen to us..." Luna whispered to herself. "She knows... She knows everything."

Only the sound of her boots clicking against the tile could be herd through out the school as she made her way to the library, Their is where the records It had to be.

* * *

"Thank you Jack!" Dusk said cheerfully as she gave Fritz the ham bone jack gave them as they exited the Oakhaven restaurant. "Not a problem Dusk, send my regards to for me!" The husky jack said as Dusk and Fritz walked threw town once more. Some of the tourists stopped to pet fritz and only a handful stopped her for an autograph or a photo, which surprised her since she usually ate up the attention.

"Maybe it's the longer tails, eh boy?" Dusk asked Fritz as she twirled her long tee-zed up, green streaked, pony tails. Fritz laid down under the shade under a small tree near the Oakhaven flower shop. She leaned against the tree while fritz chewed on his bone. She took a deep breath to take in the warm New England summers air and looked around her at the tourists around her.

_**"Ich brauch Benzin! Benzin! Gib mir Benzin!"**_ Her phone screamed as Benzin by Rammstein played. Karl turned her on to Rammstein along with a few other bands when he was among the living.

"Hello?"

"Can't believe its grown this much in ten years, ya know?" A mans voice asked her.

"Yeah, it's a trip... Who's there?" She asked as she scanned around looking for the source of the voice. She never trusted the sound of a mans voice, besides Karl's and to some extent James.

"He-He, Good. It's good you forgot about me, yet you don't forget Karl. Your sister, Luna, hasn't forgotten either..." The voice said

"Who the fuck are you and how do you know about him or my sister?!" Dusk demanded.

"That will come in time, my dear. But, I have a gift for you from your beloved 'Klokateer', I believe that is how you say it. Go into the flower shop and tell the shopkeeper that your here for Karl. She will hand you a package, it something he has waited a long time to give you..." The voice became distorted and began to sound almost like Karl. Dusk didn't trust the caller, but her heart said other wise... The phone went silent and Dusk found herself confused and rather unnerved at the fact that who ever this was knew about her, her sisters, Karl, and where she was! Her father was the first suspect, but he was not among the living anymore, Thank the heavens.

"Stay here boy." She told fritz as she walked into the small flower shop. The smell of summer yellow aster, coral dahlia, white gaura, and other summer time flora filled the air around her. Dusk wasn't a fan of flowers or plants in general, unless you count the spring flowers on a Venus flytrap. The owner was an older woman of about fifty or sixty by the name of Barbara Edwards, she was one of the many who helped construct the now famous faux witches ghost, played by her surrogate father Willard Mcknight. She was a rather stout woman with thick lightish brown hair and a love for all things floral. Dusk never knew Barbara personally, but Luna and Thorn knew her. If they were not practicing songs, hanging out together, or on tour for that matter. Dusk would always find Luna here with Barbra fiddling with roses or helping her with flower arrangement of some kind. Barabra's flower shop is also where Thorn would pick up the peppermint and cloves for her soothing remedies along with the occasional red roses to brighten up her side of their room.

Barbra turned with surprise to see Dusk standing in the door way, "Dusk," Barbra said in a surprised tone. "How are you doing today?"

"I'm doing fine, Just taking Fritz for his afternoon walk." Dusk replied as she walked over to the counter where Barbra was pruning her prized crimson roses, a gift from Luna after their return from Romania. "He gets a little restless when he doesn't go out for a walk. Hey, Have you seen Luna or Thorn around town lately?" Dusk asked Barbra. "Hmmm, Thorn stopped by to pick up a rose for James about an hour ago." She mentioned, "Luna came by as well, but she didn't say where she was going though… She look troubled, like something was eating at her." Barbra's cheer voice became grave as she remembered seeing Luna in her store. "Her hair was beautiful though, it really brought out the good in her eyes. Have you seen it?" Barbra asked as she returned to her pruning.

"No, I haven't seen it. Do you know what direction she was going in?" Dusk replied. Barbra thought for a moment, "Now I remember!" Barbra's face became more animated as she pointed with her pruning shears down toward the direction of Oakhaven high school. "She was going toward the school to find the janitor, Lance is his name if I remember correctly."

"Thanks," Dusk said as she walked toward the door, but she stopped herself as she touched the door and turned back to Barbra who was back at work blissfully pruning.

"Mrs. Edwards?" Dusk asked nervously.

"Yes, my dear?" Barbra replied.

"I'm…" Dusk paused as she contemplated asking Barbra for whatever the man on the phone asked for her to do. 'Is that guy right?' She asked herself as Barbra waited for her to finish. Dusk took a deep breath and exhaled slowly as a wave of calm emotions settled her nerves.

"I'm here for Karl."

Barbra placed her sheers on the table and slowly walked to the back room with out a word spoke. She returned a couple of minutes later with a large box marked with a small shipping order with the words 'Hergestellt in Deutschland' (Manufactured in Germany) written on it. Barbra wiped the dust from the rather large package and pushed it over to her.

"Open it." She said bluntly. Dusk looked at her and the package questionably, "Whats in it?" She asked Barbara. "Open it and you'll find out." Dusk hesitated, but gave into her own curiosity and began to peal the packing tape from the package. Inside was a large black and white shoe box with Gothic plastered on the front in Gothic lettering.

"After the witches ghost fiasco last year, Karl came into my store with this box and requested that I order a specific species of Rose from the Valleranello Rose Garden in Rome. I told him that acquiring even one peddle from their exquisite collection would take an act of god." Barbra explained as Dusk took the shoe box from the package and placed it on the table in front of them. "But he persisted and said to try my best to get my hands on just one of those beautiful roses. Karl said to 'Give it to the raven eyed drummer with the tails.' He-he, It was so sweet of him. He told me to call him when the roses came in so he could deliver the package personally, but that was over a year ago." Barbra clucked as Dusk opened the box to reveal a pair of knee boots with white buckles. Dusk expression became that of a child on Christmas day, full of joy and wonder, as she took the boots out of the box. On that bombshell, she couldn't help but jump up and down like a gleeful school girl, completely out of character for her, and began to put them on. To Dusk's surprise, they fit perfectly as she slid her perfect little feet into the boots. Taking to her feet, she pranced around gleefully in her new boots.

"There perfect!" Dusk exclaimed as she sat on the counter next to the box. Barbra was struck in disbelief at the slight before her, Dusk was... Joyful... Happy and full of glee. Barbra then gave a sigh and reached into the box and pulled out a green envelope. "Dusk, honey, you forgot something." Barbra said as she handed the blissful Dusk the envelope. Dusk opened the envelope and inside of it was a handwritten letter.

"From your Klokateer, I hope to see you again some day. With love and affection, Karl Dael."

A tear of joy and sorrow fell from her eye and landed on the buckles of her new boots. "I can't wait for you to come back." She whispered as she picked up her old boots and walked out the door after telling Barbra thank you for giving this wonderful gift from the past.

* * *

Luna began her search in the only place she could, The library. Oakhaven high school may have been just another school in the eyes of New England. But it was known through out the county for having a large collection of books donated from a cross the country by a former student only known by the moniker of 'The Countess.' The library was based loosely off of old English libraries in design and style, but with out the beauty and more of an institutional feel rather the intellectual feel of a true English library. The large oak shelves housed titles that no modern day high school student of average intelligence could possibly identify, nor could the book keeper herself. As Luna passed by each section, she came across her favorite section of shelves know by her former classmates as "The Hex Corner" where the Hex girls would pick up books and novels ranging from the basics of Paganism to Celtic mythology, Witchcraft to Exorcisms, and even novels written by the towns once famous author, Ben Ravencroft.

Luna gave a nostalgic sigh as she walked past her favorite part of the library, "Maybe I'll come back before I leave." She said with a grin as she walked toward the main shelf near the help desk where the year books were kept in hopes of search through each one of them for at least one picture of Claudia or at least find some proof that she was real. Luna could not piece together the moments after they entered and left the manor, only brief, yet frighting and distorted, memoirs of strange events and actions… Yet she remembers, in detail, chasing the gypsy through the woods until the woman approached her. Her words were nothing but a blur, but she remembered the tone of her voice, sallow and motherly. "Was it all a dream?" She asked herself as she came to the book case where the leather bound yearbooks sat collecting dust. Luna scanned through the books in hopes of finding the year Claudia attended Oakhaven high, But to no avail. Only one yearbook was missing, 1975-1976.

"Where is it?" Luna hissed as she looked around on the shelves for the book. She rolled her eyes annoyed at how such a large book could be missing from the case, after all the bookkeeper here was ultra anal about where her books were kept, let alone a prized leather bound hard copy of a school year book!

"Ugh." She snorted as she turned around to search the rest of the library for the book. Luna combed the library for what seemed to be hours until she found herself in the same position she was in when she entered the library, Empty handed and hungry for answers. Coming out of another section of the library, Luna eyes were drawn to the very center of the Library where a lone podium sat under the last light of the sun shined through the octagon shaped skylight above it. Something was drawing her to the podium and soon she walked over to the podium and found a large leather bound year book. The book was left open on the forty third page, section M, Year 1976.

Luna scanned over the photos until she found a picture of a girl of her own age dressed in what seemed to be Neo-Victorian attire with a white frilly top with a red corset. Around her neck was a silver wiccan pentagram and at that moment, Luna recognized the woman in the picture. "Its... Its..." She shuddered.

"Claudia Angelica Marlin." A man voice interjected from the shadows.

Luna panicked and slammed the leather bound yearbook shut, "Who's there!?" She demanded as she searched the shadows around her.

"A friend." The man said.

"Two friends." The cheerful voice of a 17 year old girl said.

Luna looked to her right to see a tall, well built, man of thirty with brown hair and dark hazel eyes dressed in simple brown work cloths. His voice was deep and mirrored Karl's slightly, but not entirely. To her left was a young girl of seventeen with long blonde hair and uniquely purple eyes and wore a striped black-and-green tank top, a pink skirt and a black headband.

"Kimberly 'Luna' Moss, Correct?" The intimidating voice of the man asked Luna. She stuttered and before she could answer she felt the genital hand of the young girl on her shoulder. "Don't be afraid of Whitetail. He may look all big and bad, but he's nothing but a big softy once you get know him." The girl giggled in such away that unnerved even the paranormal savvy Luna. Luna turned to the man with a unnerved, but questionable look on her face.

"Are you whitetail?" Luna asked hesitantly as stiffen her stance and clenched her fists tightly. The man nodded, "Indeed, but I suggest you should take a more passive stance." Whitetail suggested as the iconic, spine chilling, sound of the hammer of a pistol locking into place clicked behind her. "Or else we'll have to you pacify you and we don't want that to happen, do we?" The blonde girls said in sadistic glee as she pressed the barrel of the pistol against Luna's back.

"Widow," Whitetail called to the gun totting blonde. "What have I told you about taking my Colt? We're not here for blood." He scolded the Blonde. Widow sighed and handed the pistol to Whitetail.

Luna gave a scowl to the blonde, "Bitch." She remarked before looking over at whitetail. "You broke into my house so you could have a brat hold me up? What the hell is your deal dude?!" Luna demanded as she threw Widow's hand off of her shoulder. Widow turned Luna around with a wicked scowl on her face, "No, I broke into your house and placed his note in your house so we could have a meeting Luna! God, your just as worse as Thorn when shes pissed. Never got a handle of your anger since you left the institution, did cha?" She snapped.

Luna became in raged at the insolence of the younger girl and threw her hand on Widow's neck, gripping it tightly. "You little..." Then it hit her. "How did you know about?... Who the fuck are you two?! How the fuck do you know me?!" Luna screamed into the face of Widow as sadistic grin coated the blonds face.

"We know all, but Madam Marlin and the Order know more about you and your sisters than you'll ever believe." Whitetail said to Luna as Widow wiggled out of her grip and taking her place by Whitetail's side. "You don't remember me or my sister, Do you Kim?" Widow asked her. Luna shook her head, "I put that place behind me a long time ago... I don't remember a damn thing."

"The Twins? Do you remember now? The ones who killed their mother? My sister is dead, but I lived to fight another day with the Order." Widow said as she rapped herself around the arm of Whitetail. "You... You survived that hellhole?" Luna said in complete shock that their was another person from the asylum standing in front of her.

"The Asylum was shut down only weeks after your 'release' and the death of one of my former colleagues. Luckily, The remaining handful were set off to proper care. But we will get back to that later." Whitetail explained as he pulled out a black PDA. "Your after Madam Marlin, aren't you?" He asked Luna as Widow let go of his arm and took the PDA into her hands.

"She... She knows something... Heavy about me... Really heavy." Luna said in a faint whisper as a fierce migraine swept across her mind as bits and pieces of faint memory, or nightmare, began to play like an old movie. The pain caused her to faint in front of Whitetail and Widow, "She knows..." Luna whispered as all around her went black.

* * *

Through her eyes Luna could see a long, almost endless, hall way shrouded in darkness with only a line dim buzzing light of Florissant barely breaking the shadows around it. She could see heavy steel doors numbered with white spray paint with bolted viewing ports, but one was different from the rows of steel doors. The door was cracked and a faint amber candle light burned through darkness on the outside.  
Luna approached the door and noticed that the door itself had no locks on it, nor was their a lock on the door itself.

"Cell number seven." She read in a whisper as the door slowly creaked to life to let her in.

Inside was a simple bed inside of a concert room with a small wooden table and a small bookshelf full of books. On the table was an old candle holder with a burning white wax candle melted down to the holder and a large book rapped in string and bound in leather. As she stepped over the threshold, Luna was thrown back against another door by a burly man dressed in white scrubs wearing a mas to k over his mouth. Frantically she struggled against the might of the burly gentleman as he pinned her against the wall with her hands behind her back like a prisoner with her face pressed against the cold concert wall.

Suddenly the presser was gone as the sounds of blood curdling screams echoed through the soulless hallways of this hellhole…

Luna turned to see the door to Cell number seven was shut and the candle light nonexistent with a small stream of blood leaking from the bottom of the door, pooling near her feet. Luna dashed down the hallway and until all became black around her…

She knew this place… This hellhole… She thought it was all in the past, but the past will never die and fad into obscurity. This wasn't a simple nightmare… It was a memory of a living nightmare that ravaged the souls of three girls that would one day come together to form a band that would rock the world, But this or the fragmented strings of hazy images were not the memories of Luna herself or her sisters.

These memories were of the Asylum, Tranquil Heights Sanitarium. The place where the nightmares began.

* * *

Luna awoke to the light of the moon beaming through the skylight above. She picked herself off the floor with her hand placed firmly on her head, "Ahugh… What happen to me?" She grunted. "Where… Where are those two?" Luna looked around the shadows of the library for the figures of Whitetail and Widow, but to no avail. "The year book!" She gasped as she turned to the podium, but the yearbook itself was gone as well. The only thing on the podium was a black PDA and a file marked Subject seven. Luna gazed at the over at the files with eyes widen and proceeded to open the file. Inside was a basic physical of Subject seven along with the picture of a black hair woman with teal eyes and snow white skin.

"Claudia Marlin, Subject seven, Tranquil Heights Sanitarium ..." Luna read aloud as she could feel her stomach drop to the floor. "No... Not there... Please not there..." She prayed to herself as she scanned through the file to find that the rest of it was blacked out. The PDA vibrated and Luna looked over at it, "There is more than just this basic file, the original is in the office of the lead doctor. There is where this you will receive your answers, but not all of them. In the old barn there is transportation and a GPS to take you to the Asylum. Happy hunting rabbit. Love, Widow." Luna read aloud, "PS. Go it alone like a good rabbit or the wolves will track you down easier."

"Bitch..." Luna whispered under her breath as she put the PDA in her pocket and began to walk out of the library as her mind began to race at the thought that she had to abandon her sisters...

* * *

Whitetail and Widow watched as Luna exited the large library with the PDA in her hand. He knew as well as Luna that the coordinates lead to very place that Her, Dusk, and Thorn met all those years ago. Madam Marlin told him all about it, Hell he was the one who ordered the investigation into that hell hole in the first place. Now she was going back to where it all started.

His phone began to vibrate in his pocket.

"This is Whitetail, Go ahead Raven." Whitetail said.

"This is Raven, Report Whitetail." A female voice demanded.

"The Rabbit is going down the rabbit hole. I repeat Rabbit is going down the rabbit hole." Whitetail repeated. The woman sighed.

"Good... Good work Beau. You have done well, your work here is done. Return to headquarters for debriefing. Their are some events that are need to be attended to in the west in a city known as Crystal cove." She told him.

Beau was shocked to here her say his name instead of his code name, but soon interjected.

"But Madam, The west coast belongs to Destroido Corp. Gigagen and Destroido have a mutual agreement between one other in the States about the Paranormal in..."

"Doctor Magnason does not care what Destroido wants or what they own. What he does care about is that their is something of great evil on that side of this continent and Gigagen wants to find out what it is." The woman said harshly. "The Brimstone society is not obligated to follow the parameters of agreement or any form of international treaty or even that of Reality itself. We are obligated to keep the doors closed and the keep the world safe from them. The Doctor may be a little lacked since the Badlands incident, but his orders are as followed. "They shall never open their hellish gate once again."" She explained to Beau.

"I'm assured of your commitment to the Society after the Moonscar Island affair, after all It was you that recovered the camera that proved the existence of the werecats and of the southern gate's hand in the paranormal incidences across the swamps. Now get out of their and make hast to the west coast with widow, I'll go to the asylum."

"Yes Ma'am. But madam, what about the stalkers?" He asked her.

"They are not issue. Raven out"

* * *

_**Authors note- Widow is Alice May from SDMI. Beau is from Scooby Doo on Zombie Island.**_


	4. Chapter 4: It's Up To Her

_**Another Luna chapter as promised :) OK! Before this chapter begins, I want to say that the 'Dusk being left out in the cold thing' was a mess up on my end as the story has taken a totally different direction in a more vastly Dresner way (Complicated, very complicated XD). I'm sorry for the mess up guys, I really am. Shout out to HiddenWitch890 :) Make sure to read her work its worth it, trust me! Also I had someone ask about the Guitar song from Dusk, look up Stalker: Peaceful ending (Another version) by trabant14. Great instrumental!  
**_

_**With Love ~Dresner**_

* * *

Luna unlocked the door and walked into the house with a sigh as she looked at the picture of both young and old Claudia on the PDA. 'How am I going to go through with this?' She asked herself as she made her way to the stairs as her heels clicked and clacked against the wooden floors. The house was dark and looked empty to her. Which wasn't strange to Luna as she and her sisters were usual out and a bout and Mr. Mcknight was usually at work until eleven or twelve at night doing inventory for the local pharmacy after closing. Usually Thorn and Dusk would be practicing or at least watching a horror movie to pass the time, but not even the sound of their instruments or their bickering could be heard.

"Dusk? Thorn? Dad?" She called from the bottom of the stairs, but their was no response.

Luna was alone...

She gave a sigh and threw her phone and keys on small inn table and walked up the stairs to the girls room and sat on the bed to take her boots off from this seemingly endless day. Luna threw herself on to her bed combed her hair with her hands as her mind began to race once again with unexplained regret and shame, mixed together with cold determination to answer the unsolved questions that have plagued her mind for three months, to create a tonic of confusion and depression. Luna took to her feet and looked at herself in the mirror.

"Why… Why is this happening to me? Abandon by mother and father, hunted by psychopaths, and now this?" She said to herself as starred deeply into her brown eyes in the mirror. Luna became angry and broke the mirror with one swift punch. "WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH ME?!" She screamed into the mirror as glass shattered before as her frustration reached its boiling point.

"You need to chill out and maybe you'll figure it out." A cheery, yet arrogant voice of a younger girl said. Luna turned in a fit of rage with fists flying toward the voice, but a blonde purple eyed girl caught her hand and twisted it behind her back. "YOU!" Luna hissed as Widow threw her on her bed. "I'm hurt Luna, I would think you would be a little bit more… Civil... About me coming to check up on you." Widow said sarcastically as she looked over at the broken mirror with a shit eating grin on her face. Luna gave scowl that would have made Dusk proud, Hell Dusk would been proud to see her show a little bite period.

"What do you want bitch? How did you get in here?!" Luna barked as turned on her back to face Widow from the bed.

"Oooh and I thought you were the nice one, or was that Thorn?" Widow asked sarcastically as looked over the girls room with a smirk. Luna was about to give an insult, but Widow put up her hand and interjected. "I'm not here to argue, I'm just here to talk." Widow said as the grin melted for a more serious expression as Luna gave another hateful scowl until Widow sat down on the bed next to her. "I can sense that your feeling your giving us second thoughts on our little handout..." She explained as she took up the PDA. "I'm not going to abandon my sisters to hunt for some psychopathic witch! I've had it!" Luna screamed at the blonde who gave a long laugh before turning toward her. "It's not up to you, It's up to her and you know to much..." Widow said as she pulled a dagger from her dress boots. Luna panicked and kicked her off of the bed and Widow fell to the floor, Luna rushed out of her room and down the stairs to grab her phone from the Inn table to call the police.

Charging down the stairs, Luna reached the inn table and began to dial 911 on her phone frantically as the enraged widow leaped from the top of the stairs to the floor, landing on her feet like a lion and walked toward her slowly with a villainous grin.

"They won't help you..." Widow whispered to Luna.

"But this will..." The heavy voice of Whitetail said from the shadows of the living room. Luna turned quickly to face white tail and was met by the gleaming blue steel of a custom long barreled pistol pointed at her from the darkness. Luna only heard a quiet thump before feeling the sharp pain of a needle burrowing into her skin. She looked down to her side and saw a small dart sticking out of her skin and everything became dark once more...

Widow leaned over and pulled the tranquilizer dart from Luna's side, "It's nothing personal, Luna. It's my job..." Widow said as she handed the dart to whitetail. She gazed over the sleeping figure of Luna with remorseful eyes, but quickly turn away from her while Whitetail gave a disenchanted look to her. "Come on, lets get her in the truck and get moving." Whitetail said as he threw Luna over his shoulder and the two began to walk out the door. Widow tacked a note on the door and gave smirk as she read over it.

"Widow! Come on! We're burning moonlight!" Whitetail barked as he walked out of the door to a large black sedan waiting outside on the curb.

"I'm coming! Just hold on damn it!" Widow replied annoyingly as she posted the note on the door and rushed into the Coupe de Ville as it sped off into the night.

* * *

Meanwhile at the local pharmacy...

Dusk was worried about Luna, She hadn't seen her all day and it troubled her a bit. "Thorn," She asked Thorn as stood by her father as he locked the doors to the pharmacy. "Have you seen Luna at all today?"

Thorn shook her head, "No I haven't, I've been busy all day with songs and junk. Why?" She replied as she fixed her bangs. Thorn changed her hair about a month ago to update her look a little. She cut it to her shoulders and cleaned it up to a more modern look, but she still retained the red highlights to keep it original. Dusk shrugged, "I don't know! I'm just a little worried about her, that all." Thorn looked at her sister questionably and soon noticed her new boots.

"Where did you get those boots?" She asked Dusk. Dusk gave a sigh and the sad look on her face gave it away and Thorn gave a tiny smile to her sister before hugging her. "Karl gave them to you? Didn't he?" Mr. Mcknight asked her with a grin. "Yeah, he did..." Dusk became rather quiet and a formed a little grin as the two girls and their father walked down the street with only the moonlight and the streetlamps lighting the way.

They reached their home and to their surprise only the light on in the empty house and Fritz was still in the backyard, usually the girls would let him come inside for the night. As they came to the door Mr. Mcknight spotted a note tacked on the door from his kitchen note pad. His face became pale and shock took over his body... He turned to the girls handed them the note before going to the pouch swing to calm himself down. Thorn and Dusk were confused at what was unfolding and sat down on each side of him. Both read the note together and soon the same expression of shock over came them...

_"Dear Willard, _

_It's been to long since we last seen each other Willard, Ten?, Eleven?, or is it twelve years? Soon we will see each other again, I'm sure of it. I'm sure that you will have a lot to explain to our daughter as well, but, let us save it until we meet again. My agents have Luna and have taken her to where all of this trouble began, For us and for them... _

_It's time to come back from the sanctuary... Back into the darkness..._

_Sincerely, Madam Claudia Angelica Marlin._

_PS. I can not wait for my reunion with my kin... Don't keep me waiting Willard."_

On the bottom of the page was a kiss made with red lipstick with a heart drawn around it. The two girls froze in fear and looked at each other with the same fear and dread filled expressions.

"Does she mean that we have to..." Dusk asked in fear.

Thorn's expression became serious and she nodded, "Yes, We have to return to where it all started..." She said coldly.

"The asylum..."


	5. Chapter 5: Welcome Home

_**It's been what? A week or so? Well here is another chapter of Cross the Rubicon for your wonderful Friday :) Thank you all for your views on my stories for November and your reviews as well, it's great to know that people are enjoying my writings :) **_

_**The next chapter will be showing Dusk, Thorn, and Mr. Mcknight as they enter the Asylum. **_

_**Wonderful Thanks to HiddenWitch890 and Grumpydrawer for their stories and if it wasn't for them I wouldn't have had great writings like these to bring to you, Show them some love with a review or two and take a read for their stories. **_

_**With Love ~Dresner**_

* * *

"Look at her sleeping so soundly." Claudia remarked as she folded her hands in the shape of a pyramid with her elbows placed on her desk as she watch Luna from a security feed from one of the many, and surprisingly operational, CCTV's installed through out the Asylum. Luna was fast asleep on a old spring bored bed dressed in a white patients gown with her head propped up with a pillow for some comfort. Whitetail stood behind her as he to gazed over the various screens he repaired and restored over the last few weeks with a slight grin on his face from the quality of the work he had done with such basic, and outdated, equipment. "She looks peaceful…" He remarked as Claudia zoomed in on to Luna's face and gazed strangely at the expression on her face.

Luna's expressions were unpredictable as she slept changing from blissful to troubled, angry to depressed, and soon to forgiveness. Claudia looked on in awe and continued to study her with her tired teal eyes and briefly brushing her grey streaked black hair out of her face. "Oh how I wish to be back in the company of a gate once again…" She sighed, "Youth is addicting and is wasted on the young, wouldn't you agree Beau?" She asked Whitetail, oddly referring to him by his first name. "Yes Madam…"

"Don't call me Madam, your making me feel old." Claudia interjected with a slight chuckle as she turned in the officer chair toward him. Beau was at around Claudia's age or a year or two younger, but, being the gentleman that he is always referred to her by Madam as a sign of respect toward her. She was drained of her power, He knew this because of the grey in her hair and wiriness in her eyes. Beau could not help but wonder what those beautiful teal eyes have seen in her years, especially one with such power as she possess. Claudia's powers were a strange set none the less, and neither was her choice of attire.

Regeneration, Reality warping, Clairvoyance, Aura Reading, and Sorcery to name a few. Yet their seemed to be more to her than just her power and secretive nature.

Beau has been Claudia's right hand man since he joined the Brimstone Society five years ago, she picked him personally after the Moonscar island affair for his efficiency as a field operative and his ability to produce results, on and off duty. Claudia enjoyed having someone like him to work with, He was strong, cunning, respectful, and even a little handsome to her ageing eyes. Claudia's complexion was flawless, with no sighs of ageing unless you looked deeply into her eyes, as was her figure. But her hair showed a more older Claudia with grey streaks running through her hair and the tired, worn, and sleep deprived eyes of someone on the lam or their last leg. Beau found a stark beauty in her power and the way she acted, as well as feel some sympathy for his employer.

"Yes Claudia, It's hard to break old habits. But, Yes, youth is wasted on the young. It's the law of life though." Beau replied. Claudia smirked and gave a nod, "Nature is cruel, but she is fair. God on the other had can be debated on his mercy let alone his fairness, the same goes for the rest of the gods." Claudia began to fiddle with her hair and looked over Beau with hungry eyes. "I agree." Beau said coldly, trying to keep his cool.

"Your professionalism has no end, does it beau?" Claudia asked him with a sleepy little smile as she stood out of her chair. Beau looked over Claudia to see she was wearing her maroon brimstone overcoat with a light blue frilly under shirt and dark grey trousers tucked into a pair of knee high boots with leather straps rapped around them. He was surprised to see that she was wearing her uniform instead of those gypsy rags of hers. The collar on her frilly top was turned up around her neck and relieved a Wiccan pentagram necklaces. Below that was metal gorget held around her neck by a chain that with sorceress written in German with Gothic letters, Zauberin.

"No Madam." He replied as she ran her fingers across his face flirtatiously with a giggle at his response.

"Come on Solider boy," She said as she walked toward the heavy iron door into the hallowed halls of the asylum. "Lets welcome our new guest."

* * *

The sound of heels or boots clicking against concert floors echoed though the hallowed halls and into Luna's room. She tossed and turned in her bed, rapping her pillow around her ears to block out the sound as she slept. The noise became louder and louder until finally the footsteps ceased and Luna finally turned on her side with her back facing the door and slept undisturbed with a little grin on her face as she slept soundly.

Claudia peered through the slit in the door with a little smile and gave the loving sigh, "So peaceful…" She remarked in a motherly tone as she closed the slit. "Open the door Beau," She ordered. "I want to check on her." Claudia's voice sounded remorseful in some way, as did her now glassy teal eyes.

Beau nodded and took out his key ring he brought out the old master key, a skeleton key, and unlocked the iron door. The sound of grinding gears and rubbing metal echoed through the halls as the door opened to reveal a simple concert room. The cell itself was a basic at best with a small bathroom, simple spring bed, and a small window where the light of the moon over shadowed the light of the dim bulb above.

On the bed was a snoozing Luna with her back facing Claudia and Beau. Claudia smiled and stepped past the threshold into the room. She could feel a heavy weight on her shoulders as she entered the room, The weight of hatred and contempt for every fiber of this accursed and damned asylum. Stepping into this room in particular rose her level of hatred as her blood began to boil as bits and pieces of a shattered memory hit her mind with the force of a freight train. She clenched her fist tightly until her nails began to dig into her palm. Beau looked on from outside the door as Claudia's hand began to drip tiny drops of crimson blood, "Madam Marlin, are you alright?" He asked urgently as he stepped into the cell and grabbed her bleeding hand. "Yes..." She replied as she fought to repress her nightmares. "Just... Reliving the past... A past that should have been put to rest a long time ago." Claudia said with a sigh as Beau ripped a strip from his brown work shirt and rapped it around her hand. She gave a chuckle at his caring act, "You know I can heal myself, correct?"

"Yes, but It's force of habit..." Beau replied as Claudia kissed him on the cheek. "It's the though that counts." She said with giggle as she turned to Luna with a caring smile and sat down on the bed with the sleeping girl. Luna turned on her other side facing Claudia with her arms rapped firmly around herself. Claudia looked at Luna's new hair style with a grin, "Such beautiful hair, wouldn't you agree Beau?" Claudia asked Beau as she brushed Luna's hair away from her face. Beau nodded, "Yes Madam." Claudia gave a smirk, "Beau, go back to the security station and monitor the perimeter. I have a feeling that my daughter and her father received my message. Widow on her way to Crystal Cove, I assume?"

"Indeed, She is making her way to Crystal Cove. Our contacts in the city will brief her when she arrives. Mr. Machine is willing to corporate with Brimstone, His replacement is digging into matters that are better left undisturbed and Ed does not agree with it." Beau reported. "Good… Good… Hopefully we can kill the Tsar on this one. It would please our employer, as well as get my name out of the gutter as it is." Claudia replied as she gave a frown at her reputation with in the Society. Beau gave a chuckle and shut the door behind him as he walked out. The door shut quietly with the only sounds being the two girls breathing and Claudia's heart beat as her anxioty began to rise as Luna placed her head, unknowingly, on her lap.

Claudia was slightly caught off guard as the snoozing keyboardist cuddled against her. "She must be having sweet dreams." Claudia said to herself in a whisper as she ran her hair through Luna's hair like a loving mother. "Even though you are not my blood daughter, you still have a place in my heart." Claudia reached into her coat pocket to retrieve an red amulet with a Lorraine cross with the sign of infinity below the bars, The alchemists sigh for Brimstone. Claudia squeezed the amulet tightly until her hand was engulfed with a green aura. Placing her other hand gently on Luna's forehead, Claudia squeezed tighter on the amulet until the green energy covered both of their bodies in its light.

Beau watched from the comfort of the security officer through the camera with a look of awe in his eyes as Claudia's power overwhelmed the camera with its light. Beau had seen this ritual before, It was a test of power and purity, The same test that she gave to him and Widow. "She's Dream walking." He said to himself as the feed to the camera shut down. "Good Luck Claudia."

* * *

Claudia opened her eyes to see that she was standing on a hill over looking a quaint, yet vibrant, english town in a flamboyant autumn sea of orange, red, and yellow. She knew this town, but couldn't place its name for the life of her. Her memories were faded at best and could only remember the Brimstone designation for the small New England town, Puritan.

She Hmm'ed to herself as she looked around to get a feel for her surroundings. "It's been awhile since I walked through the dreams of another human being." She said to herself. "You can do this Claudia, You know what you must do." She said reassuring herself as she jumped into the air and began to levitate over the hill. She took off toward the center of town at a brisk pace, sorrowing across the blue skies and the fall tree like an angel sent from the heavens. In a person dream world, they control everything, but, if you have the amulet of a dream walker you an manipulate the dreams of another. Claudia possessed one of these rare gems and used it to its full effect in the gather of information and in testing her cohorts and apprentices. Claudia could fiddle with Luna's dreams as much as she wanted to, but only if Luna did not realize her presents, Or wake up for that matter. The Amulet had one major fault in that it only allowed the use to But that did not matter to Claudia, In the Dream world she was an apex predator with no one able to challenge her on equal ground, It was a different story in the mortal world of course...

From the clouds above she saw the tourists coming out of their mini vans and SUV's like clowns out of clown car. Groups of families blocked the streets and pilling into the various stores to buy any frivolous trinket that they could get their hands on. "Seems the tourists found my fair little town…" She said as she landed in the park where the portly Mayor Corey was greeting Ben Ravencroft and Mystery Inc. "Oakhaven Autumn Fest." Claudia said as she looked over to the banner hanging beside the group.

"Hmmm, This is a memory... Must be a fond one if she remembers this place." She said to herself as looked for Luna in the crowds of people. "Shit, she's across the street." Claudia said in surprise as the Hex girls past by in their trade mark line. Thinking quickly, she snapped her fingers as an idea came to mind. "Duh, She's having a dream and is using a memory as its base. That means I can..." Claudia ran her hand just above her body and transformed into a young red headed girl dressed in overalls with a green long sleeve shirt with a light blue and white checkered scarf rapped around her neck, even in the dream world she could not resist wearing her own brand of fashion. She walked down the street in her new attire with a nostalgic smile on her face as she remembered her teenage years here in Oakhaven, even if it was all just another girls dream.

Claudia was not from Oakhaven originally, She was born and raised in Baton rouge, Louisiana. She moved when she was fifteen to New England to escape the rising crime rate, and the heat of all things, to a quiet life in Oakhaven. It was peaceful for her and her family, but soon things changed and it never stayed the same to the young Claudia...

Blending into the crowd of illusions, She followed the trial of Victorian homes until she reached a rather familiar two story home with a white gated fence and Claudia soon realized something rather heart breaking to her. This was the home that she and her former husband bought together and where they raised their daughter until that faithful day when she checked into the very hellhole that she dragged Luna back into.

"Welcome home Claudia..." She said to herself in tear filled sorrow as she realized that this is the closest she would ever get back to the very house where she raised her daughter.

"Welcome home..."

Claudia disengaged from her incursion into Luna's mind and threw the amulet against the wall, "I can't do this to her! It's to underhanded." She protested in disgust of her own dishonest and deceitful actions. She looked to the camera to see if it was still activated and spoke out loud, "Beau, bring her some cloths and a small meal. She's going to need it when she awakes up." She said with a remorse, yet firm tone of voice. "Yes ma'am." Beau said over the loud speaker. Claudia looked back to the sleeping Luna before walking out of the door, "Even in a dream I still can't return… Never again…" She said shaking her head in disappointment.

* * *

**_One Hour later..._**

Luna awoke with gasp and put her hand on her heart as it pounded in her chest fiercely. She remembered nothing after Whitetail and Widow ambushed her in her own home and shot her with some kind of tranquilizer. "Where! Where?! Where am I?!" She shouted in disarray as she looked around her to find herself in a 10x8 concert room laying on a primitive spring board bed and dressed in a white patients gown.

"Oh god…. No… No it can't be…" Luna's face became fearful and she began to panic. "No… No… No…" She chanted with tears streaming down her face as the memories of the past resurfaced and became the present once again. Luna bolted to the small window and grabbed the bars, thrashing her arms in a hopeless and desperate attempt that they would some how break. But the cold iron bars didn't budge...

Outside and down the long asphalt road was a large iron gate with name of Tranquil Heights Sanitarium written in gothic lettering.

An ear bleeding scream erupted from the calm and collected Luna echoing through out the outskirts of the asylum and throughout out its hallowed halls… Tear raked her face and turned her warm and tender eyes into bloodshot bulbs of despair. She fell to the ground, struggled to breath over her unceasing sobs and cries, into a ball near the window chanting no in hopes that this was all just a nightmare, just a terrible, cruel, and sadistic nightmare…

It wasn't a nightmare, But the cruel world that was reality.

"Good morning Kimberly, I see you have slept well." A female voice called over the intercom. Luna looked up at the metal disk speaker on the celling above her, she recognized the voice…

"Claudia?" She asked, but the speaker ignored her.

"Your clothing is in the lavatory, change out of those ugly garments of yours and into something more fashionable… Hospital white is not your color my dear. Feel free to visit your nightmare, but please hurry. Your meal will get cold if you do not make hast. Welcome home Kimberly…"

The speaker fell silent and Luna was left in the crushing silence and amber light of the cell. She managed to pick herself up off of the ground, but fell to the bed with more tears dripping from eyes as the weight of despair proved to be more than she could take. She screamed one more time at the top of her lungs until a sharp pain filled her throat causing her to cease her screaming. Luna leaped off of the bed and ran to the bathroom as fast as she could and turned on the faucet and began to splash ice cold water against her face in hopes of waking herself up, and at least wash the dried tears off of her face. Luna looked at herself in the small mirror to see that her hair had turned a light pink, which shocked her but soon found a fondness for it as she runs her fingers through it with a slight grin. Something caught her eye in the mirror and to her surprise she saw a elegant Neo-Victorian outfit with a pair of black ankle boots sitting on top of them.

She threw on the white frilly top with a frilly crest with a red stone in the middle, a red corset on top, a black and red two layered skirt, and the ankle boots and to her surprise to find that she looked rather dashing in the Neo-Victorian look. But her moment of vanity was short lived as she was straddled by the sound of grinding metal against concert. Luna peered around the corner from the lavatory to see that the heavy steel door was open as a warm summers breeze rush through the open door way.

Luna sighed and swallowed her fear as she slowly walked to the doorway and into the warm darkness of the hall. The clicking of florescent lights echoed through the hall one by one to illuminate her way through the hell that was the asylum. She took a deep breath and looked from left to right down each end of the hall way. In front of her was another cell door with a white number seven spray painted on the door with a note taped above it. Luna stripped the note from the wall and openned it to see a message written in cursive.

_Welcome home._


	6. Chapter 6: The Things We Believe In

_**Readers, This chapter does run a little long. But bare with me, It's worth the read. Before I begin, I want to say that the Hex girl's pasts in my stories** **follows the idea set by Hiddenwitch890's story ****Sanctuary and references to History Repeats by the same author. Their is also references to GrumpyDrawer's Badland Rock Concert. They are writing friends of mine and they make references to my work as well :)  
**_

_**I want to say thank you to my American, British, Canadian, Danish, Australian, and German reads for coming to read my work, Thank you all so much!  
**_

_**Sorry for the long wait :) R&R**_

_**With Love ~Dresner**_

* * *

"We're here..." Mr. Mcknight said as he pulled the sedan to the curb and turned off the engine. He looked over at Thorn to see that she was still looking out the window, as if she was frozen in place. In the rear view he could Dusk laying down in the back seat sleeping with a troubled look on her face.

"How can she sleep?" Thorn whispered, the first word she had said in the hours since they left Oakhaven. "Muffy was walking Fritz all day, you know that helps her with her stress." Mr. Mcknight answered. "Ever since Karl left her..."

"Shut up Dad!" Thorn snapped. "He never left her or us! He gave his life for us and we would have done the same for him. All of us would!" Thorn was angry at her father and opened her door, "Now come on, If that crazy bitch is here then Luna is too." She slammed the door shut and woke up Dusk who gave a distasteful look at Thorn as she walked toward the closed gate.

"Is that?" She asked Mr. Mcknight. "Tranquil Heights Sanitarium..." Mr. Mcknight said gravely as he to stepped out of the car and walked toward the gate. Dusk followed behind at a slow pace as chills ran down her spin from the memories of this retched place began to break the surface from her usually tough outer shell.

The Tranquil Heights Sanitarium was where the girls met as young girls, Why they were placed there is still questionable to this day, but bad things happen to good people. Dusk's mother, Jenny, died in the most violent way possible by the hands of her own husband, A worthless degenerate by the name of Michael who later died under mysterious circumstances after he left her to rot in this hellhole. Luna was the prodigy of a wealth dentist and a devout social worker, but after she stepped out of line after a failing grade she cussed out her teacher and her parents sent her way to Tranquil Heights for 'Rehabilitation' after her out burst.

They were later convicted on child abuse and other crimes a year after the girls release and subsequent adoption by Willard McKnight.

Then there was Thorn...

Thorn was kidnapped by an unknown group of individuals and was later taken by authorities to Tranquil Heights for 'Rehabilitation' as well. She was not harmed physically or sexually, surprising in this age of degeneracy. Her memory was faded and fuzz, even for a young girl of eight years old. But one thing she did remember was the soothing voice of a woman before found herself laying in a 10x8 cell on a spring-board bed. It was her home for two years until they finally escaped from the nightmare that was Tranquil Heights with her sisters and later returning to her father where they live with to this day. The past of the Hex girls is relatively unknown to anyone besides their father, Willard Mcknight, and Karl Dael.

Who wouldn't keep that a secret?

The Iron gate itself was brand new and smelled of fresh lubricant and oil filled the light summer breeze that swept into her face and flanked by what seemed to be freshly laid stone columns. "Hey Dad," Dusk asked Mr. Mcknight, who turned around in surprise that she even called him dad in the first place. "Wasn't this place closed down shortly after... You know?" Dusk asked nervously as she watched his expression after she called him dad. "Yes... It was. The authorities shut it down after they found out about the treatment of its patients." He said with a studded as he could not help but be a little over joyed at Dusk calling him Dad. "More like inmates..." She remarked.

"If you two don't mind," Thorn rudely interjected as she shook the heavy gate trying to open it. "Help me open this damn gate!"

"Sally, this place is close. We should just calm down and…." Mr. Mcknight said in hopes of calming his daughter down, but she turned to him with a look of contempt and lashed out at him. "And what? Just sit by and let Luna rot in that damn place? No way, thats not how I do things Willard." Thorn said defiantly. "She's my sister and she's YOUR daughter just as much as me and Dusk, so help me!" Dusk rose her brow and gave an impressed grin, "Heavy Thorn, Heavy." Dusk said with a nod as she rushed over to help Thorn. Willard wanted to respond, but kept his mouth shut and shook his head from side to side.

_"I can't say anything about her… I just hope she is bluffing about wanting to_ talk…" Mr. Mcknight thought to himself as his two daughters shook the fence with all their might.

"Damn it! This thing won't budge." Dusk shouted as she let go of the steel gate and looked at the iron spikes on top of each bar. "There has to be another way around this gate." Thorn remarked as she looked around to see away over the large stone walls that surrounded the asylum. The walls were at least ten or eleven feet high with no crevasses to get a grip on to climb over.

"There is none, so stop trying." A voice said through an old speaker mounted on one of the pillars. "What the fuck, I thought this place was abandon!?" Dusk said in an outburst. Thorn walked to the speaker and pressed the intercom button to answer back to the voice on the other end. "Who the hell are you? Where's my sister?!" Thorn demanded.

"Let me handle this one Whitetail." Another voice said a sweet tone. Thorn could vague recognize the voice, but couldn't place it.

"Yes Madam." The other voice said.

"Come in, and please, feel free to explore. I have a feeling Kimberly is doing just that." The female voice said. A buzzer sounded and the gates slide into the pillars.

"Welcome home girls." The voice said as it faded into static as the intercom switched off.

* * *

Thorn lead the way, as she always did, up the long asphalt path up to the hilltop Asylum. The grounds were stark and lifeless with dead foliage and bare trees shattered on its grounds. Insets and common pests like raccoon's and squirrel's were nowhere to be seen either.

"This place is a dead zone." Dusk said as she took out her phone to see that there was no signal on her phone. "The tree are dead, all of them are. Just look at the woods outside the gates, They're all green and beautiful." Mr. Mcknight said as they pasted by a collection of bare trees toward the middle of the grounds. Thorn looked around to see more dead trees spread around the grounds as well as bare bushes as well as they drew closer to Tranquil heights.

The dawn light broke the treeline and covered the asylum in a river of orange, yellow, and amber light. The darkness retreated back into the shattered windows of Tranquil Height Sanitarium. The trio could see the asylum in full for the first time in eleven years. Tranquil heights mirrored that of Denbigh Asylum in England with it traditional 19th century English architecture, but covered in thick kudzu vines that poked out of its massive windows and engulfed the whole front of the building. Will all but the main tower and chimneys covered by the parasitic plants. All of the windows were broken and shattered glass covered the road near the asylum itself with only a hand full that were boarded over with 2x4's and ply wood.

"Look at this place Thorn," Dusk said. "It's totally run down."

"Nature's reclaiming her rightful territory. Good riddance!" Thorn said with a smirk as she looked over the Asylum. Dusk gave a chuckle, She knew that if it was up to Thorn the whole of this damn place would have been burned down and leveled to nothing but dust and ash.

But Dusk couldn't complain about that, she would have wanted the same thing.

"Your starting to sound like Karl Thorn." Dusk said with a giggle. Thorn rolled her eyes as they reached the large rust cover metal door with large iron knockers held by gargoyle heads. "Where going to need to be a little like him to make it through this shit, that's for sure." Thorn remarked.

"I better get a pack of smokes and a black shirt then." Dusk said with a chuckle. Thorn joined in, but her father rolled his eyes which made the girls laugh a bit more. Thorn changed to a more serious demeanor and started to stare at the large gate with wide eyes. She placed her fragile pale hand on the metal door and to her surprise felt a slight chill race up her arm and down her spine. "The door is an ice sickle." Thorn spat.

"Sally we can not go in here." Mr. Mcknight protested as Thorn went for the door again. "Claudia is dangerous and she will hurt you, there is no doubt in my mind about that. I can't lose you again!"

"So you know about her?" Thorn asked her father in surprise, but he bit his tongue and did not answer. "Huh daddy?" Thorn was angry at her father.

"Yes!" Willard said in an outburst, but slowly got his mellow composure. "Yes... I know about her and she..."

"You lying snake!" Thorn shouted at her father and Willard protested, "I'm doing it to protect you! Now come here and leave this to the proper authorities to handle this." Willard grabbed Thorn's arm to hold her back from entering the asylum, But Thorn was to quick for the old man and slid out of his tight grip. "Like they did with me?! HA! To hell with that! I'm not letting this place take my sister!" Thorn shouted as she swung open the steel door and charged head long into the very nightmare that she escape all those years ago. Dusk and Willard Mcknight chased after her in the dank and ruined asylum, but Thorn was nowhere to be seen... She went to far and rounded to many corners. Willard and Dusk took a wrong turn and found themselves in the west wing of asylum. The steel door slammed behind them and echoed through the decaying walls a derelict hospital equipment.

Claudia walked out the shadows and watched as the trio ran into asylum, right into her hands…

"There's no going back now…" She said as the sounds of foot steps echoed though the asylum.

* * *

Beau watched as the trio through the CCTV's as they walked the down the endless dying hall of Tranquil height with a slight grin on his face as he cleaned his new AK-12 Assault Rifle, Brimstone's new standard issue small arm for field units of members of the Wolf Brigade, The Brimstone Societies hammer and anvil.

The Brigade, for short, is Brimstone's strike force when all else is lost. Drawn from over thirty countries and various military backgrounds, the men of the brigade were born for war. Prominent members use to belong to military and police units like Russia's VDV airborne, Germany's GSG9, England's SAS, and many other units and even PMC's to bolster their ranks to number over five thousand men and women. Due to the secrecy of the society itself, The brigade never operates as one force, but split into six battalions with its own commander. Some are named after their commander, like German Kampfgruppe during the second world war, others are known by nicknames forged by heroism, or fear, and earned in blood. Beau was once attached of the second battalion tasked advanced recognizance in abandon bases in the former soviet republics but earned a semi ease life as Claudia's right hand man, but still received some of the best gear on that the world arms market could give and what their main supporter, Gigagen, could purchase. The old Ak's of the badlands were not cutting it anymore and a few influential people with in brimstone and Gigagen spoke out about the quality of their gear, Claudia personally spoke with the Doctor about the matter and manage to convince him on new rifles and machine guns for the Brigade.

She didn't expect for her "Pups", as she called the members of the brigade, to receive cutting edge AK-12's fresh from the Russian Federation's legendary Tula and Izhmash arsenal's, along with other heavy weapons to replace the aging Chinese Kalash's that carried not only the brigade, but the basic mercenary, with distention through out there years in service of the Doctor. In her honor, the soldiers of the Brigade carved the name Claudia or Angelica into their rifles as a sign of respect and admiration for the estrange gypsy woman. Even though it was the standard issue for the brigade, Claudia never carried one.

"Guns are nice... For mortals." Beau said jokingly as he remembered her response to the new Kalash's. "That blade of yours won't cut it against one of these." Beau said with a smile as he toyed with the action.

"Beau, where our guests now?" Claudia called over a hand-held radio. "The old man, the blonde, and your daughter have split up. The blonde and the old man are heading toward the west wing and your Daughter is heading to cell block bravo. Luna is nearing bravo as well, should I round them up?" Beau said as he stared at shine that came from the black polymer furniture of his rifle. "No… Their on their own, for now at least." Claudia said. "Any trace of you know who?"

"No, they seemed to have lost the trail." Beau said, But Claudia interjected. "If they found me once they can do it again. Be on your guard and watch for Cipher, that bastard wants my head on a platter for breaking the code again." Claudia said with a tired and exhausted sigh. "Limiting my power is started to put a strain on my psyche and the stress isn't helping. I hope that amulet didn't leave a signature."

"What were you looking for in that girls mind anyways?" Beau asked Claudia, but with no reply as Thorn and Luna's paths began cross. "Claudia, The girl and your daughter are meeting near Cell Block B."

"Seal the exits and make a path to the auditorium for them. What about the other two?" She asked him. Beau flipped between the camera's and found Mr. Mcknight and Dusk walking through the west wing's cafeteria. "West wing's mess hall."

"Hmmm, leave them be… I'll fetch them myself…" Claudia replied as the radio went silent once again.

* * *

Dusk and Mr. Mcknight stood in the door way of the large cafeteria. The cafeteria was rather spacious at one time, as much as Dusk would allow herself to remember, even with the ever present men in white looming over them from the far corners and door ways. Now the derelict mess hall was just an abandon hall were the remains of the lunch tables and rolling medicine carts were thrown around and piled up around the cafeteria. Trash and broken glass from the sky light above littered the floors and reflected off of the shards and tin foil scraps to light some of the mess hall.

The Devil's vine, as Karl called Kudzu, crept through the broken skylight and hanged in massive entanglements touching the floor, seven feet below. Some of the vine grabbed on to the roof and crawled down the walls. The sweet fragrance of the kudzu blossoms laced the humid and dusty air as well as add some beauty to the stark and lifeless asylum. The vines hanging from the skylight were dotted with blooming purple Kudzu blossoms contrasted against the green of the leaves, added some life to the dead psychiatric ward.

"I remember this place…" Dusk said as she stepped into the cafeteria with an air of unease hanging over her. "The sky light is new, but I remember this place…" She looked around at the decay around her with a little brief smirk. The dark memories of this place was overwhelming, but Dusk couldn't help but feel a tad joyful and relieved that this place was finally shut down and rotting just like her father left her here all those years ago. In a near by corner was a table covered in a fine layer of dust and rotting insulation covered in black mold. Dusk pointed to the table, "Their is where we sat during lunch. The food was whatever they could dig up, mostly fruit and water. First time we ever really got to know each other was here."

"What happened here Muffy?" Mr. Mcknight asked.

"Torture… mentally and physically…" She said gravely. "It's nothing I want to talk about dad."

Dusk looked back over at the table once again to see herself and her sisters when they were younger sitting at the table with brief smiles on their faces. She closed her eyes and shook her head and the visions were gone, "My mind is playing tricks on me…"

"It looks like their was a riot or something, maybe a fire. Just look at stations over there." Mr. Mcknight said, point over to the scorched stainless steel service counters some of which were melted by extreme heat. The food counters sat behind a small barrier in front of the kitchen where the workers would set out the minor rations of water and food for the patients. Sometimes they would prepare food for the guards during the holidays, real food like chicken and pork. Thorn told Dusk of the guards celebrations during thanksgiving and Christmas, as well as their unruly behavior toward the nurses… Everyone hated the guards, the nurses, the doctors, Hell even the damn walls themselves they despised.

"There's no way that a riot happened here, everyone was either to young or to gutless to stand up to the guards." Dusk remarked as she remembered her own state of mind and body back them.

"They would pump you up with pacifiers and opiates until you were mindless and subordinate, or at least that is what they did with the regulars. The more 'Damaged', like myself, were sent to the east wing and treated with torture and electroshock." The familiar voice of a woman echoed though the abandon dinning hall. Dusk and Mr. McKnight turned around to see almost a spitting image of an old Sally McKnight dressed in a maroon over coat with a frilly blue shirt, dark grey trousers tucked into a pair of knee-high leather boots, and with various idem's of interest like glowing pendents, pentagram necklaces, and a skull engraved with mystic symbols. The woman's hair was black with streaks of grey running though her hair with a maroon visor cap with jolly roger in the center of it.

"They did not dare to use the drugs and opiates on young bloods in fear of awakening the power inside and risk another violent escape." The woman said as she approached Dusk and Mcknight. The woman gave an ominous chuckle, "Those steroid popping mad men and their harlots couldn't handle want they unleashed out of me that day… He-he, even I couldn't handle it back then… But Brimstone gave me a pardon and my salvation… But they never let see my girls again.."

"Claudia?" Willard asked dumbfounded and frightful.

"Yes Willard McKnight…" Claudia said with tightness in her throat as she tried to contain herself from what appears to be a mix of sadness and scorn. "You brought my surrogate daughter… I assume that my child is here as well?"

Willard didn't reply, frozen in fear and disbelief. The woman he married and spent seventeen happy years with, who disappeared after her escape from this hell hole of tranquil heights, stood in front of him in the flesh. "I thought you… You were…"

"Gone? After our little talk?" Claudia shook her head in disappointment. "I've been away for a while, maybe longer, but I'm never gone for good." Claudia came closer to Willard and Dusk until they were only an arm's length apart from one another.

"Where the fuck is Luna!?" Dusk shouted into Claudia's face. Claudia rose her eye brow questionably and wiped tiny bits of Dusk's slobber from her face. "Have you ever heard of an inside voice, child of mine?" Claudia asked arrogantly. Dusk growled and started to become angry with Claudia, "Where the is my sister Bitch?!" She shouted as she grabbed Claudia by the collar of her over coat. Claudia smirked and looked at Dusk with an arrogant gaze, "You think I'm afraid of you, Muffy dear? He-he, you may have your anger and eyes from your father, but your just as scared and confused as your mother." Claudia taunted Dusk and pushed her off of her. "Wait just one moment Claudia!" Willard shouted and reached out for Claudia's arm, but she was to quick for the older Mcknight and delivered a swift backhand slap across his face knocking him to the ground.

Dusk lashed out at Claudia in attempt to strike her, but she was to quick and dodged her punch. "You have to be a little quicker than that to catch me." Dusk became furious and her anger only grew as she launched another assault against Claudia, but every time she threw a punch or a kick. Claudia would dodge it and a large shit eating grin would appear on her face along with a taunt or snide remarks that would hit her right where it hurt the most. Soon Dusk tired out and began to fatigue, "What…. What… What are you?" Dusk asked exhausted from her fail attempts to attack the witch.

Claudia opened her coat to retrieve a pack of Marlboro black cigarettes, Karl's favorite brand of cigarettes , and began to light one of them and took a long drag off of the cigarettes. "More than you ever will be…" Claudia said as she blew a cloud of smoke into the air and gave another grin that made Dusk's skin crawl with distaste and anger. "Now if you excuse me, play time is over. Thank you again Willard and I stretch my dearest thanks to you, Muffy St. James, for this wonderful bonding experience." Claudia said arrogantly as she finished her cigarette and crushed it on the ground with her boot. "But, I digress, I have more important things to attend to… Like my daughter." Claudia said with an evil smile as she left the cafeteria in a backwards hand spring. Dusk ran to the knocked out Mr. Mcknight and kicked him awake,

"Come on Dad! She's going after Thorn Come on!"

* * *

The clicking of Thorn's heels against the concrete floor echoed though the halls of Tranquil Heights. All around her was solid concrete, a sigh that she was entering the cage she reluctantly called home for years before their escape. The concrete preceded by decaying Sheetrock, pealing wallpaper, and abandon hospital equipment. It was traumatizing for her as she was the one who spent the most time in this ghastly realm of darkness and despair. Her anger, her need to find her sister, and instinct to protect her fueled her rage and gave her the courage to push on through her nightmare...

The hallway of the cell block was lit by dying florescent lights that buzzed just like the electrodes of the chair that the sadistic doctor loved to toy with her in. The hair on her neck would stand on end and her hands stayed permanently clenched in a fist every time the buzzing began.

"Luna!" Thorn called out in vain, but to no avail as only her own echo answered back. "Luna!" She called out again and met by the same response, nothing. Thorn Continued on down the cold corridor toward the end of the cell block, searching every cell until she found her sister. One cell was open and was rather familiar to her... It was her own cell... with its door wide open. Thorn was hesitant and walked slowly and quietly toward the door to peer inside of it for any sign of life. Inside was nothing but a simple spring-board bed and simple closed in bathroom. It was just like she left it all those years ago...

She walked into the cell, compelled to by some overwhelming need stand in the room of which she spent most of her life in constant fear and dread. Through the tiny window she could see the sun in full view and looked at her phone to see the time. "7am, Wonderful..." Thorn said as she took a seat on the bed and buried her face into her hands.

"Why here?" She asked herself out loud as she began to sob, "Just... Just why here... Why this hell hole? Why us? Just... Why us..." She cried out loud as her crying became louder and louder.

* * *

Luna stood over a file cabinet in the doctors personal office, sifting through the various documents and files looking for anything on Claudia with the light of a candle. Only a handful of information was found on her, but what interested Luna the most was the files labeled 'Castaway'.

Luna found three files labeled 'Castaway' and sat them out on a table. Each contained Dusk, Thorn, and Her own real names, psychological profiles, and other basic information as well as a picture of them when they were younger, A rather stark moment of nostalgia that Luna wish she could have forgotten. Along with those unwanted memories, she found Claudia's basic file that contained information on her basic height, weight, and state of mind.

"Nothing else… Damn it!" She shouted in disappointment at the lack of information. The faint sound of sobbing caught her attention and Luna looked out the door with suspicion, wondering if it was another trap of some kind set up by Claudia and her faithful lap dogs. She ignored it and continued on searching the file cabinet like a detective working on a cold case...

The dusty and dirty office of the former sadist doctor was blanked in a thick coat of dust covering everything, including the broken celling fan and the celling itself was covered in dust. The only light Luna had in the windowless office was that of simple candle light of one of the doctors favorite candles that Luna liberated from the decorative redwood desk along with a pack of matches.

"Ugh, another candle down the drain. Great…" Luna said as yet another candle burned out. She dug into the personal cabinet of the Doctor and took out yet another candle to shed some light on her findings. Taking a seat in the torn leather rolling chair, Luna began to read over the basic profile of Claudia Angelica Marlin.

* * *

**_Name: Marlin, A. Claudia  
_****_Gender: Female  
_****_Weight: 127lbs  
_****_Height: 5.6 ft  
_****_Hair Color: Black  
_****_Eye Color: Teal  
_**

**_Personal notes:_**_  
Mrs. Marlin personally checked herself in on April 30th 1996, in her own words, after a "supernatural incident". Test have shown that her psychological state is rather unstable and have shown sighs of Schizophrenia. Paranoia, Rash decision making, and over all unpredictability have lead to my Assistances and I placing her in the Special ward under the title of "Subject Seven" Please refer to Subject Seven's recording for more information. _

* * *

Luna turned back to the file cabinet and returned to the case, this time searching for a Subject seven. After a few minutes of going through the cabinet again for the second time her search turned cold. There seemed to be nothing on this woman other than the basics and nothing on Subject seven or any of the others, "If she's the seventh, then there must be more…" She thought to herself as she slammed the drawer shut hard enough to make the cabinet shake against a bookshelf. Dust circulated into the air making Luna cough fiercely like an Pack-a-day smoker and knock into the bookshelf itself. More dust flew into air blocking Luna's vision and she ran into the shelf again, knocking down a few books to the floor.

Luna walked forward toward the door to get out of the suffocating dust filled room for fresh air and tripped on one of the books, landing outside of the room on the floor. "Fuck. Ahhugh!" Luna grunted, "This place is pissing me off!" Luna turned on her back and looked back to the dust radiating out of doorway of the office. Picking herself up, she noticed a strange book with the title of _Subject logs 1-8. _

Luna kneeled down to pick up the book and openned it to find not a single page, but a collection of eight tapes held in a plastic shell of some kind to keep them bound to the book. A tape recorder sat on the opposed page with a velcro strap binding it to the log with a note on top of it that listed the Subjects by name and status which creeped Luna out even more than just being in this hole. Only Subjects 1, 2, 3, and 4 were marked alive… The first three were listed with names Thorn, Luna, and Dusk, Those were their tapes from when they were younger… Subject four was marked "Widow", The name of the sadist blonde that wanted to kill her in Oakhaven.

"Subject 5 was murdered by Subject 4. Subjects 6 and 8 were all euthanized by Michael personally after failing to show any promise. Subject 7 remains at large…." She read off the note in fear. Luna took the tape recorder out and pulled subject seven's tape from plastic and placed it into the recorder.

What she heard openned her eyes and dropped her jaw to the floor….

"WHY MOMMY!? WHY DID YOU LEAVE ME!?" A voice screeched in sorrow.

"Thorn?" Luna asked in hopeful whisper.

"Why?!" The voice screamed again and Luna screamed back, "SALLY! IS THAT YOU!?"

"KIM!" The voice answered back.

Luna ran down the hall as quickly as she could to follow the voice to it source

* * *

The clicking of boots against the concrete gave Thorn some hope, a small commodity in the wretched place whither it was open or derelict. She lifted her head from her hands and looked toward the doorway in hopes of seeing the warm eyes of her sister Luna. As the clicking got louder and faster, Thorn began to think… Maybe it wasn't Luna? She readied herself just incase it was Claudia coming to get her…

The sound became louder with every second and her heart thundered in her chest like Dusk's drums as the adrenaline began to pour into her body. Her muscles tighten, her face became stern, and clenched her fists in anticipation for that gypsy woman.

"Thorn!" A figure clad in red, white, and black Neo-Victorian outfit with Pink hair called to her. Thorn looked at the figure with confusion, "Luna?" She asked the pink haired figure hesitantly.

"Sally it's me! It's Kim!" Luna shouted with glee as she ran to her sister to embrace her. Thorn gave a joyful and relived smile as her sister rapped her arms around her neck. "Luna… We've been looking for you… Thank god we found you! Its you! It's really you!" Thorn shouted with joy as she hugged her sister tightly.

Luna pulled Thorn to her feet after the embrace and she looked at her rather questionably, "How did you find me?" She asked Thorn with a troubled look.

"Claudia left a note on your door, telling us to come back to this fucking place to find you…" Thorn told her with a sad expression, "Daddy knows about her… He's known all along about her…" Thorn said with a vindictive and scorn tone.

"He doesn't know everything…" Luna said as she handed Thorn the tape recorder. "Claudia's your…"

An ear shattering alarm echoed though the halls and caught the girls off guard.

"LOCKDOWN! LOCKDOWN! CONTAINMENT BREACH! SEALING CELL BLOCKS A THROUGH D Emedently!" A monotone recording of a female voice sounded as the sound steel rubbing against steal screeched over the whaling of the alarm. "Run!" Thorn yelled as the two charged into the hall.

"Where do we go?!" Luna shouted to Thorn. "The way we came! Right! Right!" She shouted as a steel door blocked off the left exit. The two sisters ran through the maze of Tranquil Height at breakneck speeds, dodging the steel containment walls and bulkheads that sealed off select areas. The girls soon closed in on an unknown wing of the asylum that even Thorn didn't know. This wing was in almost perfect condition with fresh paint and even working air and heating!

But the two did not stop running...

"Come on Luna!" Thorn shouted as they rounded a corner and slammed right into two familiar figures.

"Watch it you… THORN! LUNA!" Dusk said surprised to see all her sisters again and hugged them. The girls embraced one another in blissful joy as Willard Mcknight propped himself against the wall smiling to see all his girls again. But something wasn't right, He knew it.

"This isn't where it ends... I know this better than the girls... Claudia isn't done." He whispered to himself in a concerned tone as he scanned down the hall from left to right. In front of them was a double door with a sigh above that read "Auditorium" with light pouring out of its window slits. A voice, a beautiful, graceful, and flawless voice could be heard from the other side. Willard picked himself up and without warning walked through the doors. The girls followed suit and soon stood next to their father as he gaze upon the singer clad in maroon.

It was Claudia... All four of them knew it.

Willard turned to his girls and with a heavy heart spoke to them with a remorseful heart...

"Girls... Sally... It's time you knew the truth... Right from the both of us..."

* * *

_**Authors**_ **_Note_**

**Yes readers, you must wait for the finally of the Luna story :) Just like the writer of Game of thrones "Its coming! Its coming! There is going to be dragons and fire and everything!" Lol, But there will be some action in the next chapter. Thank you for reading :)**


	7. Chapter 7: Lament for the Mother

_**Readers! I know it's early isn't for an update, eh? Well This chapter was fun and easy to write :)**_

_**Always fun to write one of those chapters eh? **_

_**This follows after the last chapter and I know you all enjoy it greatly, Especially my friends in the writing world. **_

_**With Love ~Dresner**_

* * *

Willard McKnight lead his daughters down the isle passed the endless empty rows of dusty seats toward the stage where Claudia stood, singing to an empty house. The theater was massive with three large sections of seats separated by two isles lit with four chandeliers hanging in a diamond shape from the ceiling by decorative chains. Concrete pillars held up two balconies over looking the rows with large glass windows, three on each side, that brought in the morning sun and illuminated everything around them. The red vinyl seats were stained a murky yellow and grey from the years of dust that had collected over the years of being static, at least the ones that where not torn from there place and thrown about like discarded toys. The walls were a sicking mixture of charred black, ghost white, and puss yellow that chipped off the walls after years of decay.

The theater, the asylum, and everything was decaying and dying all around the girls... To see this place in its worst was one of the most pleasing moments in their lives, even though it was one of the last places on earth they want to be at!

They made it though the trials and tribulation of their lives, Though the darkness of the past, and yet they did not lose their minds. The girls have matured and have harden since their first experience with anything truly heavy, as they would put it.

Now Thorn, Dusk, and Luna were reunited once again, but this crusade wasn't over. Not by a long shot...

"Luna, what's going on?" Dusk asked Luna as they followed close behind Willard McKnight. "And what happen to your hair?"

"I don't know... You three weren't suppose to be here, this was suppose to be between me and that witch on stage." Luna growled. "Her goons brought me here and she changed my hair color, I mean what the hell?"

"We came after you, Luna. We don't abandon each other, remember our promise in Oakhaven?" Thorn asked firmly to her pink haired sister. "Sisters to the end, no exceptions. Even if it meant coming back here..."

"Yeah! But would it be worth it to be gunned down by some sadist psycho bitch and the wicked witch of the fucking west on stage?!" Luna burst out, "I went out to look for her after the shit in Louisiana. Something happen to me and I want to know what! I searched and searched for anything that I could and this psycho path blonde named widow and this other guy named whitetail found me at the high school. They gave me a PDA with Claudia's basic information and told me to come here, but I was going to back out... Then they jumped me, knocked me out, and now I'm here..." Luna voice was depressed and remorseful, Thorn could hear it and see it in her eyes. Luna didn't want them to go through this with her, Luna thought it was her battle to fight. Not theirs. "Luna, we are in this together. Even if a psycho bitch threaten you, we are still sisters and we will go though this together."

Thorn, Luna, and Dusk took each others hands and said in unison, "Together.", and continued on behind the zombie like figure that was Willard McKnight.

"Thorn, have you ever been to this side of the asylum?" Dusk asked Thorn as Claudia's voice became clearer and more define. "No... I was always in Block B. Never did explore the place, I was always to weak to and the Guard kept us under their heels 24/7. I didn't even know this place existed!" Thorn replied before the trio bumped into Willard.

Willard froze in place just as they past the third row of seats. The light from the sun shined warmly on his skin, It felt nice to have some kind of caring touch. Even if it was the sun. In front of him was an elevated stage with a beautiful woman danced and sang with joy in her heart. He knew her... He though she was gone forever... Her voice was haunting to Willard Mcknight, yet its extravagance took the edge off enough for him to speak up.

"Claudia! We're hear!" He yelled to her, But Claudia ignored him and continued to sing with her eyes shut as she sang passionately.

_"She's singing our song..." _ Willard thought to himself as the lyrics Jarred his memory.

_**"I am the voice of the past that will always be**_  
_**I am the voice of your hunger and pain  
**__**I am the voice of the future  
**__**I am the voice, I am the voice  
**__**I am the voice, I am the voice"**_

As Claudia finished her song, she gave a bow and looked over at the four as they stood like statues in a mix of awe and disbeilef. Claudia gave a smile and asked them a simple question, "Did you enjoy my performance? She asked innocently.

"It was beautiful..." Dusk said, but Luna and Thorn gave her a scowl. "Why the fuck did you bring us here?!" Thorn barked at Claudia as she jumped off the stage and walked toward them with a slight grin, but it faded away rather quickly as she saw Thorn step in front of the zombie like Mcknight with her sisters at her sides. "Yeah! Why did you kidnap me!?" Luna demanded. "Yeah! And what the hell happen to Luna's hair?!" Dusk asked, Luna rolled her eyes at her sister and stood closer to Thorn.

The trios Auras were red, Hostile, but Claudia knew better. They were not a threat to her at all, just merely pissed off. She gave a chuckle, "The answer to your first question is simple, to bring you to me and away from those that are hunting me. The answer to the second question is a little complicated. It seems that the Blair Amulet has altered your hair color, Dear Luna. He-he, consider yourself lucky and that it did not steal your soul or put you in a coma. One of the reasons why I hate using power limiters..." Claudia explained.

"That doesn't explain a fucking thing, bitch. What the fuck is up with taking Luna?" Thorn demanded harshly. Claudia looked at Thorn surprised and a bit offended at her. "How dare you call me that? After all I've done you and what your father has taught you, you dare to call me a bitch?" Claudia asked Thorn harshly. Thorn's expression changed from blind rage to confusion, "What are you talking about?" Thorn asked hesitantly.

Claudia sighed and shook her head in disappointment, "I brought Luna here because of two reasons. One, Because you girls are inseparable and will come to each others aid no matter what. I learned that in the airport over two years ago, Remember Sally?"

Thorn stepped back as she remembered the first time the band broke up, She was a drunken wreak. She saw a figure standing in line that looked just like her... The woman was old with grey streaks in her hair, just like Claudia. "I was..." Thorn tried to speak, but Claudia placed her cold finger on her lips. "You were drunk, I know you were." Claudia whispered and removed her hand from Thorn's face.

"Two, because the stalkers wouldn't be able to track me hear. But that is none of your concern."

"Wait... Just hold on, How did you know about that?" Thorn asked Claudia nervously trying to keep the firmness in her voice, "And how do you know my really name? The press doesn't even know our real names or anything about us..."

"Why don't you ask your father? Or better yet, have Luna play Doctor Cole's interview of me?" Claudia offered with a sly grin. Thorn turned to her father who stood like a stone, froze in shock and murmuring to himself "It can't be... It can't be..." Over and Over again. "Daddy? What is she talking about?" Thorn asked innocently. But he just continued on murmuring and staring at Claudia intensely with pules the size of a grain of pepper.

Claudia shook her head in disappointment, "What a shame Willard, I thought that you would have come clean years ago or at least tried to defend your lies..." She scowled with an arrogant tone. "Go on dear, play the tape. It's the only way to let my Sally will believe me, Like hell she will believe me with out it." Claudia told Luna in a calm and somewhat motherly tone. Luna's eyes became wide, "How did you..." Luna stopped mid sentence and gave a sigh. Luna knew the truth about Claudia, and Claudia knew this as well.

Pulling the recorder out of her boot, She played the recording...

* * *

_**Dr. Imran** **Cole: **June 13th 1996, Dr. Imran Cole interviewing Subject Seven of the Project X Program. Interview 13, State your name and number Subject Seven._

**_Claudia:_**_ Claudia Angelica Marlin, Number 626._

**_Cole:_**_ Now seven, Do you have any loved ones before you checked in to my wonderful facility?_

**_Claudia:_**_ Fuck you._

(_Sounds of Metal scrapping against concrete)_

**_Cole:_**_ What did you say number seven?_

**_Claudia:_**_ (Sigh) A loving Husband named Willard and a Daughter named Sally. What is it to you and what is it to Michael?_

_(Sounds of Metal scrapping against concrete and the fluffing of a doctors coat)_

**_Cole:_**_ This is my interview, Witch, not yours. My employer is only concerned about results and nothing else, even if you had a few flings with him in the past._

**_Claudia:_**_ (Grunts) I can't wait for tonight..._

**_Cole:_**_ For what?_

**_Claudia:_**_ You'll see. (Ominous Chuckles)_

**_Cole:_**_ (irritated growl) You'll tell me now, or else I'll have to operate on you personally. Or I can have him make a personal __appearance._

**_Claudia:_**_ (Ominous Chuckle) You know why I love you? Because your smart._

_(Sounds of Metal scrapping against concrete, Sound of a punch, Sound of someone falling out of their chair.)_

**_Claudia:_**_ I'll be back for my things soon. Goodbye Doctor Cole. Oh and Michael, if your listing to this... I'm coming for you first. See you soon._

* * *

Dead silence filled the room around them. Thorn was confused and turned to her father for answers, but he hung his head in shame.

Claudia spoke up to explain, "After a ritual turned for the worse and I met Cyrus Amsel for the first time, I was brutally attacked by him and was taken to the hospital to treat my wounds. But the fools at the clinic though I had gone mad and sent me to here. I was known to have a aura of power so I was thrown into the very Project X program as you girls would be just a short time later. That tape she played was the very last interview I gave before my escape."

"Those visions you had Luna," Claudia said as she pointed at the Pink haired pianist. "were of my first use of my powers. Three guards died by my hands in the month I was here and that pissed him off more everyday." Claudia began to smile a sadistic smile as she remembered the men she killed. Her smile even caused the harden Dusk to quiver in her boots let alone the stark joy in the woman's voice. "But I digress, After my escape I was approached by a handler from the Brimstone society. The order, as it is also known, is a society older than time itself. It's newest recreation is under the control of Dr. Magnason of the Gigagen Corporation and is more well off than it's former counterparts, from what I am told at least. The order has one main goal, The study and containment of Paranormal entities the world over and if it can not be contained or proves to be threat to our world there is only one course of action; Extermination."

Her voice of blunt and cold when she spoke of the Brimstone Society, especially when she put heavy emphasis on Extermination. The girls were bewildered by Claudia's speech, it still did not answer their questions but they let her go on.

"When someone becomes a member of the order, you must sign away your life and give yourself utterly and completely to the defense of your world. No questions asked…" Claudia explained as her tone shift from harsh to abstract and spiritual. "I took up the on going struggle between the mortal and the abstract, a fight that has continued on in the shadows since the beginning of time and memorial." Claudia turned her back toward to the trio of girls and slowly walked to the stage, "When you join the society you must adopt a aristocratic conception of life, to abandon the concern for materialistic comforts and live the robust life of the outlaw. To sacrifice the degeneracy of the world around you and swear your life to the service of humanity…"

Even in a sea of confusion, Thorn could hear the admiration and passion in her voice as she spoke of this "Order", This "Society".

"She sounds like she really loves this thing she's in." Dusk said in a whisper to Thorn. "That's not love, It's dedication and devotion." Luna replied.

Claudia turned back to the girls with a remorseful look. "I never burned my incense at the alter of materialism long and turned to devoted my life toward fight the evil in this world, But I was forced to leave behind the only thing I ever cared about…" She said as her eyes began to tear up and her voice tighten in pain. Claudia walked to Thorn and placed her hands on her shoulders, "You, Sally Mcknight, are the only thing I ever cared about…"

"I was still in the states then and I tracked you down to the asylum, Neither I nor your father knew where you were. I… Did things there… Then Michael took you… Brimstone found me, said I went rogue and took me to a prison in Iceland. But before my imprisonment I informed the FBI and they found you… Took you to your father… I was released after four years and continued my service with the Order, Always watching you… Remember the card I sent you?" Claudia whispered to Thorn sincerely.

Thorn began to tear up and her face became red as a rush of emotion, Fear, love, hate, relief, and sadness charged her like a speeding train. She couldn't process it, neither could her sisters who were frozen in place from the new. Thorn struggled to hold back her tears until Claudia hugged her tightly.

"Mommy?" Thorn asked with tears streaming down her face.

"Yes my child…. Yes…" Claudia said as she too began to sob.

Thorn rapped herself around her mother tightly in a warm, and long over due, embrace. Claudia whispered into Thorn's ear, "I've always been there for you, never when you didn't know it. I maybe have been gone, but I never abandon you… Or your new sisters." Claudia said compassionately as she motioned Dusk and Luna to come in as well. They hesitated, especially Luna, but they gave in after they saw the genuine look in the face of witch that lead them in and out of the swamp and dragged them here. They two sisters didn't trust the returning mother, but they shrugged their shoulders and joined in for the sake of their sister and lead.

Claudia gave a sigh and let go of her daughter briefly, "Come with me and we can talk in a more conferrable environment…"

The sound of combat boots stomping against the ground caught her attention and a man clad in a blue jumpsuit, black combat gear, and brandishing a jet black AK-12 appeared in front of her with an urgent look on his face. "Beau, what is the meaning of this? Why are you in battle dress?" Claudia demanded from Beau. Beau was breathing heavily and trying to catch his breath, "Their… Their… Their here!" He shouted.

"Who's here!?" The girls and Willard shouted.

The cracking of a wooden door, shattering glass, and thunder of a explosion echoed though out the theater as did the rush of heavy footsteps from combat boots. The girls and their father looked around in panic as smoke bombs descended from the balconies windows and blanked them below, But the mother steadfast and looked at the main entrances, the windows, and above her. Using her Aura sense, Claudia counted a section worth of men, thirteen in the theater alone, armed to the teeth with brand new rifles and machine guns from the eastern bloc. Her heighten senses could smell the fresh gun oil lingering in the air, as well as the lack of discharged powder in there barrels. She could feel there cold steel barrels trained on her and the heavy cold blooded breaths of the men behind them. Claudia stood motionless as her Daughters and ex-husband scoured the theater with panic filled eyes looking for an exit as the smoke cleared to reveal the short barrels of AK-105 carbines and the intimidating gaze of Bullpup PKP light machine guns baring down on them from the Balconies, as well as the stubby barrels of Krinkov assault rifles staring them in the face from the main doors leading out of the theaters.

Beau trainer his rifle in all directions and held his fire, as did the armed, hooded, and masked men clad in Russian sever camouflage and black ACU's. "Agent Raven! You are to surrender now or face termination!" One of them yelled in a thick Russian accent.

"It took you Stalker's this long to take me down?" Claudia shouted to the armed men in a taunting voice, "Is this Coelian incompetence or is it your own?"

"HANDS ABOVE YOUR HEAD GOD DAMN IT!" The Russian yelled again, but Claudia laughed. "Whatever you say!" Claudia chuckled and suddenly the ten men on the balcony were thrown back as monstrous gusts of winds flew through the broken windows.

"chto yebat'!? OPEN FIRE!" (What the fuck!?) The Russian yelled as three remaining men opened fire on Claudia... Thorn watched as the blinding muzzle flashes of the Krinkov's illuminated the back ground, causing her to shield her eyes in terror. The firing went on for thirty deafening seconds until the panicked shouting of the Soldiers caught her attention. On that Bombshell, She opened her eyes to see Claudia unscathed with her right arm firmly in the air with an open hand holding a orb of light blue energy.

"What the fuck..." She whispered as looked past her mother to see one hundred bullets hanging motionless in the air. "Shes..."

"She's a Witch Sally..." Willard spoke up for the first time in thirty minutes.

Claudia laughed as the soliders began to reload there weapons at a cumbersome pace, "Having trouble boys?" She asked them kindly, But the soliders continued to struggle with their AKSU's. She laughed one more time before the orb turned red and the bullets changed direction and killed the three soliders to her front.

Claudia turned to Beau, "Lay down covering fire! Protect my girls from these pigs!" She screamed as she charged toward the stage as the crack AK's and thud of PKP machine guns clicked at their heals as they ran for the stage as Beau fired his AK-12 at the recovering soliders on the balcony. A monsoon of lead poured from the machine guns, ripping up chairs, decimating concrete, and filling the air with the aroma of burnt gun powder and hot lead as the group threw themselves on stage and disperses to the back stage.

"Dead or Alive men! Dead or Alive!" A solider yelled as the group ran back stage.

The six met up near the back exit where a small courtyard once was to regroup and figure out a plan. Beau took cover on a wall near the exit to load another sixty casket magazine into his rifle. "Ahhhh ugh! These fuckers find us!?" Claudia grunted in anger as she began to pace nervously on the dying grass. "Who were those guys!?" The girls shouted. "5th Battalion of the Wolf Brigade, The infamous "Stalkers"." Beau said as he chambered a round in his Kalash.

"Who?!" Thorn shouted in panic.

"Remember when I said they were hunting me? It seems an old friend of ours has come back for me..." Claudia answered coolly.

"Coelian suspects you of betrayal, You weren't suppose to give that Karl guy those boots or were you suppose to let these girls open that fucking gate!" Beau interjected, "Brimstone was going to handle Amsel without having to nearly end open the gate to the spirit world to near let that damned writer out of it! Now we are going to die because of your stupidity!" Beau got off the wall and marched toward Claudia with his hands wrapped tightly around his gun. "You've dragged me around with you for years, going against Paladin Coelian orders on every turn, and breaking your contract to see your hack of a daughter? Pathetic!" Beau exclaimed in anger as he lifted his rifle to his shoulder.

Claudia's blood boiled as a red aura took over her body and with one flick of the wrist thew beau against the wall. "HOW DARE YOU EVEN BREATH IN THE PRESENTS OF MY DAUGHTER, LET ALONE EVEN DARE TO INSULT HER!?" Claudia screamed as she stomped over the pined Beau. "I Should crush you like the pitiful insect that you are and paint this forsaken hellhole with your mortal blood! Do you understand, Beau?" Claudia asked in a terrifying whisper as she slowly clenched her hands into a fist, increasing the energy and force on beau body. Slowly crushing him against the wall until he plead for mercy.

"Now then you foolish..." Claudia's body jerked forward as the crack of a high powered rifle echoed thought the small courtyard. Beau fell off the wall into a roll and retrieved his Kalash to kill the sniper. Beau fired in the direction of the shot with a punishing barrage of 5.45mm cartridges into a small second floor window over looking the courtyard where a sniper poked the muzzle of his rifle out of, The Sniper dropped his weapon through the window as the bullets tore through his body. "Fuck! Come on it isn't safe here!" Beau yelled as he reluctantly picked up Claudia and lead the panicking girls and their father through the next half of the Asylum toward the Guard's accommodation and facilities with the Stalker's of the 5th battalion hot on their heels.

* * *

Breezing in the guard's barracks, Beau put Claudia on the ground and removed her coat to inspect the wound. "Fuck! That wasn't a regular hollowpoint!" Claudia said as she tried to contain her pain. "It's fucking blessed and made of Iron, Ahhh ugh!"

"It went though your shoulder, but missed the bone by an inch. I'll see if I can pick the fragments out before the Stalker's get here..." Beau said as he drifted off into a train of thought as he began to pick at Claudia's wounds with his fingers. "One of you hand me a bottle of scotch or whisky or something to clean this wound? She can't regenerate with Iron in her body, let alone one that was blessed by the Catholic church!"

Mr. Mcknight sprang into action and began searching for anything to clean the wound. He manage to find a bottle of whisky and a medical kit to patch up his ex-wife, god knows how much he would need a drink to forget this nightmare!

Thorn, Dusk, and Luna sat close to one another listing for the sound of foot prints in the hallowed halls. "Thorn..." Luna asked Thorn fearfully.

"Yes Kim?" She answered with a blank expression as she tried desperately to processes everything that has happen to her.

"Are we going to live though this?" Luna asked fearfully as the silence became unnerving and Luna became jumpy and paranoid.

"There's always hope…" Dusk said in a calm and cool whisper. Her sisters turned to her with looks of shock on their face, "Dusk… We could die here… You know that right?" Luna exclaimed to her unusually calm sister as they sat on the dirty floor of the derelict barracks. The barracks, or dorms, were the living quarters for the guards, but It appeared to everyone that it was looted by the emptiness of the room and marks on the floor from dragging the metal frame of the beds. Dusk looked over at the wounded Claudia as Beau and her surrogate father cleaned her wounds with whisky and medical tools. She then looked back to her sisters to see the fearful and defeated eyes of Luna and the confused and lost eyes of a new Thorn.

Dusk looked down to the boots on her feet and took her celtic neckless in her palm and began to smile. "I know, But I know that if I die today… I will die knowing that I had a family that loved me, Sisters that were their for me, and that I found someone who loved me for who I was…" She said with a slight smile and a heavy heart. The sisters came to one another for seemed to be the last time and held each other close as the sound of foot steps echoed faintly through the halls.

The steps became louder and louder with every moment….

Their heavy steel toe boots stomping against the concrete briskly, heavy gear bouncing against their backs, the sound of rifles being readied, the smell of adrenaline in the air, and the overwhelming fear of death fill the hearts of the girls as they huddled together on the dirty floor.

Mcknight and Beau were rushing to clean out Claudia's wound as best they could so she could heal herself, but it was to late… Four Stalker's came into the room with rifles pointing in all directions, searching for them.

"Anything?" A solider called out, "Nyet, Nothing but dust." Another answered.

Thorn, Dusk, and Luna openned their eyes and looked around, trying to keep quiet. Thorn looked over to see Beau pointing his AK Directly at the lead Stalker, Her father knelling motionless next to Claudia, and Claudia extending her arm into the air with her two fingers and thumb extended.

"Sally, Stay quiet." Claudia whispered as she struggled to keep her hand in the air.

The soldiers held their weapons against their chests calmly and walked out of the door speaking in Russian, But Claudia kept her hand in the air until the footsteps ceased and the silence returned.

"Oh god." She gasped in pain as she took heavy breaths. "I have never had to use an illusion on so many before! Ahhugh!" She grunted in a whisper as Beau handed her the bottle of whisky to calm her nerves. The bitter taste of the whisky sent a wave of calm though her body as she downed a quarter of the bottle and handed it to Beau, who poured it on her wound as Willard finished pulling out the last of the Iron slug.

"Finished." Willard said as Claudia threw her coat back over her shoulders. Claudia took a few deep breaths and stood up quickly, but fell into the arms of Willard from lack of energy. "Fuck.." She spat as Willard caught her. "I'm spent… I need to rest…" Claudia panted as Willard helped her to her feet.

"How are we suppose to escape these guys?!" Thorn shout to her mother.

"Theres a passage way to a maintenance tunnel that runs under the asylum," Claudia replied as she gathered her thoughts and strength. "I used it ten years ago and I bet it's still open, The fools were never up for real labor like sealing off a tunnel."

Claudia took the lead down the long hallway toward another room marked "Maintenance one" and down a flight of stairs toward a long concrete tunnel with piping of all kinds bolted to the walls with scarcely lit with lamps hanging from the celling. Beau peered around both corners with his rifle and gave the rest of the group the go ahead. Claudia ran with down the tunnel with the rest following close behind and Beau watching their back for any hostile Stalkers until they reached the end of the tunnel.

"I hope this is the right one!" Claudia pled as she looked up to a small latter leading to the surface. "Willard! Go up there and check it out!" She ordered Willard, who reluctantly complied to his ex-wife, and took up the ladder. Willard removed the manhole cover and a river of sunshine filled the tunnel with its warmth and beauty.

"We're outside the perimeter! Come up!" Willard shouted as he climbed out of the hole and awaited eagerly above to exit this damned place. Claudia sent the girls first and waited for them to reach the top, but the sound of frantic Russian caught her attention and she, along with Beau began their way up the ladder.

"Ostanovite ikh! Otkrytyy ogon' !" (Stop them! Open Fire!) One of the Stalkers yelled before a swarm of fire from the stalkers carbines engulfed Beau as he climbed the latter, Killing him before he hit the ground...

"BEAU!" Claudia screamed in terror as the sun was just coming into her sight. "Mom! Come on!" Thorn yelled franticly from above as she hung on from the ladder. "I can't leave him behind Sally! I'm sure you understand why…" Claudia said as she looked down from above at the brutalized body of Beau laying on the floor in a puddle of his own blood.

"Go! Go now!" Claudia shouted to Thorn and her sisters, but Thorn persisted. "I'm not leaving you!" Thorn protested, But Claudia didn't bother and threw her arm into the air and a gust of wind threw Thorn and her sisters out of the manhole. Thorn, Luna, and Dusk were thrown onto the ground from the blast of air and Thorn rushed over to the manhole franticly as the hole cover sealed the entrance...

"Mommy!" She screamed as the sounds of gun fire muffled her screaming. "Nnnnnooooooo!" Thorn screamed in terror as Willard picked her up and slung her over his shoulder.

"Come on! Back to the car! We got to get out of here!" They shouted to her as they ran to the entrance and threw Thorn into the backseat of the car and stormed down the highway.

* * *

Five soldiers charged out of the entrance of the asylum just as the car sped off into the unknown.

"Paladin Coelian, The interlopers have escape. Do we pursue?" The lead Stalker asked into his headset to his Commander.

"Negative. What is the status on Agent Raven?" The deep monotone voice of Paladin Coelian asked.

"Fire team three reported blood trails leading toward the service tunnel, But they have not radioed back. We can only assume the worst sir." The Stalker replied.

"Then she is still alive..." Paladin Coelian replied as he drifted off into thought. "No matter... Your mission is over. Fall back to the extraction point and await further orders."

"Yes Sir." The Stalker replied as he gathered the rest of his men and exited the Asylum.


	8. Chapter 8: Wilkommen

**_This part of CR follows Karl and his Jorney with Ben in a land called Verusea _**

**_Disclamer- I own nothing and the names of the countries are, yes, from the ACE COMBAT series of games set in the world of Strangeworld. I love that series. But regardless I own nothing but Karl._**

**_With Love ~Dresner _**

* * *

"Thank you for your hospitality..." Ben Ravencroft said, bowing to a kind woman as he and Karl exited her farm house. "No No No! Thank you for coming by Ben, it's been far to long since you have visited us!" The woman interjected with a thankfully tone as her two small children crowded around her. A light breeze blew past Ben and the young ones took under their mothers thick rabbets fur coat to shield themselves from the icy wind. Ben smiled as the little boy and girl hid under their mothers coat, "We better get going before the snow begins again, Have a wonderful day Christiana."

"You as well, Thank you again Ben. Be careful... Please... Please be careful..." She pled, giving Ben a kiss on the cheek.

Karl looked over at Ben and Christiana with a melancholy gaze. The woman looked to be in her mid twenties or early thirties with short blonde hair and dark eyes that seemed to mirror his muse, Dusk. He could only sigh and walk back to the large Don horses that they acquired from a village of Cossacks just up the road from Christiana's farmstead. The Cossacks here in this strange world seemed to mirror that of the Russian and Ukrainian counterparts in his world. Even the world itself mirrored that of Europe and Russia completely with its large mountains leading to dense forests and finally the rolling plains and the steppe.

Heavy snow and the icy wind caused the two men to take quarter in Christiana's farm house for the night. They had hope that the endurance of the Dons would have gotten them into the next territory, but strain of the elements combined with the blinding snow made them think other wise. Luck was on their side as Ben knocked on the door and their she appeared in a frilly night gowned with her hair tied in a pony tail. It took awhile for her to let them in after she saw the new and improved Ben Ravencroft. After a while the two made found themselves sleeping in a warm home and dinning on a warm meal of pork goulash and red wine.

Soon the morning came and they needed to be on their way, But Ben could not help but give a warm goodbye to his love. Could Karl blame him for it?

"You kids behave for your mother, She's a kind hearted woman who gives everything she got to make sure you grow up right." Ben told her kids before they came out from under her robe and hugged him tightly

"We'll miss you Uncle Ben!" They exclaimed.

Ben chuckled as he returned the embrace, "I'll miss you as well." He said as he could feel the warmth of their love against his cold heart. Karl smiled as he could see Ben's ora become warmer and more inviting.

Ben stood up from the embrace for the children and threw on the fur lined hood of his black winters coat as the snow began to fall again. "We better get going, hopefully we can make it to the next Provence before the snow picks up." Ben told Christina as he kissed her hand. She blushed and waved his goodbye as he walked to Karl and the horses.

Karl and Ben mounted their horses with there bodies well rested and full stomachs as they rode down the snow covered dirt path toward the next province of this vast land that Ben referred to as 'Verusea'

* * *

"So tell me Ben, Where in hell are we?" Karl asked him with some tact in his voice as he tighten the reins on his black Don horse as they rode down the dirt snow cover path through a wooden mountain that mirrored the Black forest of southern Germany with its large pine and fir trees along with a few spars Douglas fir and Norway spruce mixed with in the tree line. The beauty of the snow cover trees and the large snow cover hills dotted with pine trees gave way to strong mountains that dominated the clear sky line above them. The Dawn light broke over the mountains and the warmth of the morning sun put a smile on the black coated figures of Karl Dael and Ben Ravencroft as they road on their large black Russian Dons.

"Hmmm I believe we are near the village of Ruckendorf." Ben replied. Ben looked up toward the mountains and pointed toward a large, more alpine, mountain in the distance. " has the highest summit in the Bujanov Provence... That mean we are... This is grand! We made it to Bujanov!"

Karl was puzzled, He has traveled land like this before his move to New York State and this mountain range mirrored that of Germany almost the letter. But the names were distinctly Slavic and Germanic, which he could not understand why the two were together.

"That still doesn't tell me where we are!" Karl replied, "What country are we in? Further more what is Verusea? Where is it on the map?" Ben shook his head as he removed the fur lined hood of his black trench coat.

The renown writer of the mortal world did not exist anymore. The Ben Ravencroft of the mortal world vanished along with his obsession of power. The Ben Ravencroft that was banished into the darkness of Sarah Ravencroft's accursed spell book died along with the her. Evil was replaced by a man who was unsure of his role in life, unsure of himself. Defeating Sarah and ridding her evil conclusively managed to satisfy his need, his lust, for power and dominance.

The high he received from humiliating her, hunting her down like a timber wolf after its prey, and finishing her off, still burned with in his black heart until simmering upon the balcony of his castle in the realm of the Black sun. At his hands he ended the lives of only two souls, Sarah Ravencroft and Cyrus Amsel. Both of his own blood line, his own kin.

'Their deaths were justified.' He would tell himself at night. 'They were justified.'

The hundreds, maybe thousands, of deaths caused by the two of them alone were unjustifiable by any standard. Ben took half hearted pride in the fact that it was he who ended the lives of two of the most powerful entities in the all the black sun dimension's history with their own power, but to end the lives of his own stock still took a tole on him.

When the Triple goddess commanded Karl to his castle to send him and cyrus back to the very pit of hell from wince they came, Ravencroft had two options.

Either end the evil or let the evil end him...

Killing Cyrus was easy... Giving a proposition to a determined foe would be a challenge. But Ben was surprised to find that He and Karl were not so different from one another and surprised to find that he was a fan of his literary work as well! The two figures of light and darkness were united by one common cause, Returning home. With one word the two men set off into the vast unknown without a single hint of hesitation, Comrades. The word itself means almost nothing with in the confounds of western countries such as America, but on the bloody battlefields of Eastern Europe the word was used to described the brotherhood amongst the soldiers that fought and died in the name of their cause. Ben and Karl's cause was to return home, to return to their loved ones.

For Karl that meant returning to Dusk, But Ben was unsure of what he would return to...

"Hold on Karl." Ben told him as held up his hand for silence. "Listen... Do you hear that?"

Karl listened for a moment and soon he could hear the sounds of cheering, something that he hasn't heard in ages. "Cheering... He-he, when was the last time you heard such a beautiful sound before Ravencroft?" Karl asked him with a grin as the two brought their horses to a stop. The black coated Karl looked at Ben with the wild eye of an adventurer and began to adjust himself on the Cossack saddle for a long dash down the snow covered path.

Karl wore a black trench coat with a black cap over his short brown hair that mirrored that of the German M43 field cap worn by Panzer Commanders with white piping and sliver buttons that held the winter flaps to the bloody and tattered black fleece jacket along with his ripped blue jeans were still on him and wreaked of death from the fight in the manor. They were worthless in this cold, but at least the officers jackboots managed to keep his feet warm in this weather. The saddle itself and the body heat of the horse kept his thighs warm with the fur and leathered lined seat of the saddle and the warm hair of the horse.

Ben laughed, "It has been a while since I've heard anything besides the wind and terror filled screams. It's almost foreign to hear anything else."

Ben wore a black fur lined trench coat with a hood to keep his head and neck warm from the freezing tempters of Verusea's fierce northern winters. The black suit made out of silk and flesh was traded in for a more conferrable, and less terrifying, black turtle neck sweater with a black tunic coving it. Matching black trousers lined with wool tucked into a pair of riding jackboots completed the all black outfit. His long black hair was tied into his classic pony tail as was his beard which was tied inViking form with two separate tails for his beard.

"Race you there!" Karl shouted childishly as he bolted off down the road as a cheerful Ben gave chase on his Don. The cold air burned their faces as they charged around the twists and turns of the snowy road until they reached the rather large village of Ruckendorf.

The village itself was distantly German in appearance and feel as the renaissance seemed coexist perfectly with the gothic and Romanesque architecture as the simple medieval half timber homes and market places complemented the elegant and complex beauty of the gothic church in the center of town. A wooden sigh read 'Ruckendorf' written in gothic lettering stood on the side of the road as it shifted from dirt to asphalt. The cheering became louder and louder as they entered the town to see groups of cheerful school children running through the town with flowers in their hands. Three of the children turned around as the clicking of the Don's hooves against the asphalt Straße (Street). The children wore clothing similar to that of children in the 1920's in America, but one of the boys wore a black uniform with a brown shirt and black tie with a hat that was similar to what Karl wore. The boy's hat was marked with a red shield with a black raven in its center. He was around the age of sixteen or seventeen, but acted as if he was Karl's age with brown hair and green eyes.

"Thank you! Thank you so much!" The children shouted to Karl and Ben as they began giving them flowers and cheering for them. The Boy in the uniform gave a salute to Karl, "Thank you for your service to our great country, Herr officer!" The boy said as he gathered the other two kids, a younger lad and a brunette girl, and walked the two kids toward the town square where the cheering grew louder and louder.

Karl and Ben followed the uniformed teenager down the street where a large crowd of villagers were gathered near the town square. In their hands were little red, black, and gold flags sealed with a black raven like that of the boy's cap and shield. They drew closer to the crowd they began to see the cheer smiles of more people on the other side of the square as they threw flowers toward a group of soldiers wielding the grandfather of all assault rifles, The STG-44.

The troops walked in the formation of a squad with their rifles on their backs and waved at the crowds of people. They were clad in field grey with mixed assortments of camouflage ranging from the German pea and leibermuster patterns to the Russian leaf and brown ameba patterns. Their motley appearance became more apparent as more troops appeared behind them riding on a hotchpotch of German Panther, King tiger, Russian T-34, and IS-2 Tanks, All of which were painted in equally mismatched way.

All the Tanks, APC's, Half tracks, Trucks, and other vehicles all wore the same Shield and Raven as the as the flags in the hands of the towns people. As the crowed Panther tanks came closer, Karl could see the confident and harden faces of the Soldiers. Some of which were women and young boys that were mixed in with the young and middle aged soldiers. This army looked as if it was running on its last leg, but the confidence in the eyes of the men, women, and young boys said other wise.

"They look like Germans." Karl remarked as the Stahlhelm clad troopers rode on top of a passing Tiger tank. "Are those Russians behind them?"

"Close, but not quite." Ben said as an IS-2 came behind the Tiger tank. "Those are the troops of the Estovakian military, the Landwehr." Karl was confused beyond all belief. "What in the hell is Estovakia and why does it have a German name?" Karl questioned Ben as more troops marched down the street with flowers falling from the tops of buildings. Ben gave a chuckle and dismounted from his horse.

"Estovakia is a Federation of The Germanic nation of Belka and the Slavic republic of Volkhov." Someone spoke to them. Karl and Ben turned toward the voice and were met by a tall imposing figure clad in a grey leather trench coat that stopped at his shining Jackboots and a grey visor cap with a gold iron cross badge and a black raven above it. The man was at least Karl's age with a Go-T similar to his with an eye patch covering his left eye. Around his neck was an iron cross with an oak leaf cluster, four diamonds on each arm of the cross, golden ravens wings claps superimposed with two swords soldered to the bottom of the wings, and tied with a black and white ribbon.

"Willkommen auf Ruckendorf, Ben." The figure said in a thick German accent. "How have you been my old friend?" He asked as he extended his hand out to Ben.

"Erich Zorin," Ben said as he shook the hand of the grey coated figure. "My Belkan friend, great to see you again. How is Sandra? Is she doing all right? How about the Children?" Erich laughed, "Sandra is wonderful as are the kinder. Sandra leads a the local troop of L.E.G (League of Estovakian Girls) and luckly for the children, The school system still holds the high standard for education that Belka was renown for before the Waldreich conference of 1919." He explained as he looked with large white toothed smiled as a familiar melody began to play in background.

The song was Russian, Karl could tell by dramatic use of horns and over all feel. Karl could only understand a little of the song, but in his heart he could feel its meaning.

"Katyusha..." He said as Ben and Erich began to sing Katyusha in English.

"Apple trees and pear trees went into blooming,  
River mists began a floating flow,  
She came out and went ashore, Katyusha!  
On the lofty bank, on the steeply shore.

She came out and sang she song about  
Her young friend, the bluish eagle from steppe  
All about the one she dearly loved,  
The one whose letters she treasured and kept.

Hey, a song, the song of the young girl,  
Fly and go after the bright Sun,  
Find a soldier on the distant borderlands  
Say hello from Katya waiting long for him.

Let him remember the young and simple maiden,  
Let him hear the song she now sings,  
Let him protect his Motherland for sure,  
And their love Katyusha will protect."

Villagers, children, Soldiers, Tank riders, and even the trio of coat and bearded figures of Ben, Karl, and Erich sang together. Karl looked on the smiling and cheerful crowd, The cocky and battle harden troops, and even the small children. "I've never seen such pride before..." Said the Journeyman as he sat a top of his black steed.

"You haven't seen the 30th of January celebration or Constitution day." Erich said to him as the last cluster of troops drove by in a Green Hanomag halftrack splotched with white wash like a Dalmatian.

"Now come on, Let me buy you gentleman a drink. The Raven's Den always serves it's soldiers free of charge."


	9. Chapter 9: Krieg

_**Sorry for a long wait, Had a few things come up lately and my time has been a little short **_**_lately._**

**_With Love ~Dresner_**

* * *

The Ravens Den was a small local tavern where the off duty soldiers of the Estovakian army came to hand its hats and lay down their rifles for a cold beer or two before their redeployment to only god knows where. Karl and Ben followed Erich into the tavern where the smell of hops and barley filled their noses with delight, or at least filled Karl's with delight.

"Willkommen to the Ravens Den brave soldiers of the Fatherland!" A young hostess greatest them warmly as she gave Erich Zorin as firm salute and a kiss on the cheek. "Brave men like you deserve a drink on the house. Come sit in my section." She said softly as she lead the trio to a booth near a window.

"Danke schon." Karl said to the brunette host. "Bitte schon, what would you brave Landser like to drink this fine day?" She asked the trio as they took their seats. Erich sat his officers cap on the table and removed his leather coat to reveal a field grey uniform clad with a German infantry assault badge, Iron cross second class, close combat claps in gold, and ribbon bar marked with countless other awards that Karl couldn't identify. His collar patches were two oak leaves and his shoulders were dawned with two shoulder straps of a Major General of the Wehrmacht.

Erich turned to the hostess and ordered beers for the three of them. Karl noticed three patches on the sleeve of Erich's right arm. Each patch was a white strip with a tank in its center, Tank destroy badges, award for killing an enemy panzer single handedly, a feat of extreme bravery in its own but to have three of them is amazing!

"Three glasses of your finest brew for my comrades and I." Erich responded as he pulled a bill that resembled a Russian ruble with the number fifty marked on it. The girl was surprised and rushed quickly to retrieve three beer steins as she stuffed the bill into her apron.

"Ben," Erich addressed Ravencroft. "Who is your friend?" He asked pointing over to Karl. "Karl Dael, Pleasure to meet you Herr Zorin." Karl said, introducing himself to Zorin with a handshake. "Ahh I see, you speak my native tongue eh?" Erich said with an impressed look on his face.

"Jawohl." Karl said.

Erich smirked, "Ben where did you pick this man up? He sounds a Emmerian, but speaks Belkan like he is from the capital."

The hostess returned with three beer steins in her hands and placed them on the table before retreating to the front door to great more off duty soldiers. Ben took a drink of his beer before answering Erich's question. "He is neither because he comes from my world." Ben answered. "I speak your language because in our world there is a nation called Germany that mirrors your nation in language and, for all that I know, Its culture." Karl responded. "My family is primarily Swedish and German on my father side, but my mothers side is mostly English and Irish. I'm fluent in Deutsch, but only able to speak a hand full of Russian or should I say Volkhovian?"

Erich gave Karl a large grin, "Now we have something to drink to. Welcome home to the fatherland, Karl." Erich said as he rose his beer stein in a toast. "To what brings your to our Federation?" He asked after finishing his drink.

"The way home..." Karl said coldly. Erich looked at Karl and then at Ben with a raised brow. "The gate, Erich. The gate to the world of the age of Aquarius." Ben told him. Erich became serious and folded his hands together. "Ben, Their is a problem." Erich said grimly. "The gate to Aquarius is..."

The door flung open and three men dressed in black uniforms appeared. "Generalmajor Zorin!" The lead man said as he stopped at the table, clicking his heels firmly as he gave a smart salute to Erich. Clad in a black uniform that mirrored that of German Panzerwaffe, Tank corps, with the smiling Calvary skulls of the black hussars, and a black side cap. But their collars bore the Orthodox Christian cross."Mein Herr their is..."

"Axel Kreiger, My name is Erich Zorin. Not mein herr, we are neither Landwehr or Volkhovian Guard. Such formalist manor is not necessary considering that we grew up together." Erich spoke as he took to his feet, Adjusting his field grey tunic and placing his hands behind his back.

"Jawohl Erich," The brown haired and clean shaven Axel said as he recovered his thought in front of the tall Major general. "The Osean 19th Armored Corps obliterated the 17th motor rifle brigade and have pushed the 33rd Panzer Corps out of Sonthofen..."

Erich threw on his coat and took his cap in hand. "Finish your brew and throw on your coats!" He shouted to Karl and Ben. "Ready the staff car, to the frontline macht schnell!"

* * *

The Kubelwagen staff cars bounced on the bumpy dirt roads of rural Estovakia, toward the former border of Belka and Volkohov. Broken pieces of wall and barbwire fencing, along with the remains of pillboxes and chard tanks hulls, dotted the countryside and fields around them. Karl and Ben sat in the back of the lead Kubelwagen with Erich and Axel at the front. Clutching the ancient henry rifle in his hand, Karl watched as the countryside past by them at lighting speed. The snow fall ceased and only clear blue skies above them with the bright yellow sun in full view.

"Erich," Ben spoke up. "What is going on?"

"A break through near the strategic city of Sonthofen by Osean forces have lead to the collapse of the 17th Motor Rifle brigade and the remains of the battered and bruised 33rd Panzer Corps to retreat from the area." Erich explained. "Osean forces are pursuing the 33rd Panzer Corps on a stretch of highway known as Route 13 toward the village of Marlow. The 33rd Panzer Corp is to regroup with the Volkohovian 66th Guards and the Belkan 17th Panzer Grenadier divisions to hold off the Osean advance into our country. This isn't the first time Marlow has changed hands before, Remember the first Marlow Tank war Axel?"

"An invasion? Are you joking Erich? A war!?" Karl asked him.

"It's not the first, my friend." Erich told Karl as the sound of artillery began to sing in the distance.

"Belka and Volkohov were once bitter enemies, but after 1919 we found that we had more in common than the we had with the Oseanian war mongers and Emmerian profiteers who pit us against one another other. Estovakia was formed after the 1925 coup, bloodless thank god, and our federation was the main rival for Osean on the Veruseaian continent. Then the war came in 1939 with an Oseanian offensive against the port city Salihorsk in southern Volkhohov. It's been a give and take war ever since then, Now its 1944 and now its time to finished what they started all those years ago."

The look on Major General Zorin's face was that of burning vengeance doused with cold determination had burned an image into Karl's mind. Erich was in his element and the trio knew this as a large smile stretched across his face as they passed a group of Jagdtiger and Marder III Tank hunters as they began to take firing positions in pre-dug positions in the fields and near the village of Marlow.

Marlow was a small village of about five hundred people living in primitive housing, at best, with the only notable building being a large orthodox church at the town cent with golden domes shining in the sun light like a beacon of hope down on the tried and harden Estovakian troops sitting in fox holes and trenches below. Men, women, and children of Marlow aided their fighting men as they finished the construction of timber pill boxes, hobbled together walls made out of rubble and destroyed vehicles, coving anti tank guns with brush, and giving food to the troopers as they staffed their posts with rifles in hand.

The village was in ruins with some of the houses razed to the ground and craters from bombing made parts of the village look like the face of the moon. Even the village held the aroma of gun powder, burning petrol, and the metallic smell of blood as it linger around the air and into the noses of Ben and Karl as they car came to a halt at the front of the church.

"Willkommen zurück Generalmajor!" Four soldiers in the grey and camouflaged uniforms said as they saluted Erich as they walked into the spacious beauty of the orthodox church. The interior of the overwhelmed Karl with the beauty of its murals that covered the whole of the church's walls, Some of which were broken and cracked by massive shelling and air raids from the years. The roof above was the same with sun light breaking threw the cracks and shined on the golden crosses that sat on the untouched alter.

The rows of seating were stripped out to only two rows were some of the Estovakian troops sat and prayed with an orthodox priest blessing the men before they returned to their duties.

The whole of the church was turned into a temporary HQ with a radio set up near the back of the church and tables covered with plans surrounded with officers discussing a plan to stop the Osean Armored Corps, But soon they took to attention as Zorin entered the room.

"Tovarishch general-mayor Zorin," A female Volkhovian officer said with a stiff salute and a hand shake. "Major General Sasha Zadornov..." Erich said annoyed sigh, "Such a... Pleasure to meet your acquaintance again, are you here to watch REAL Soldiers fight?" Erich said arrogantly to the black eyed blond clad in a long grey coat with red shoulder taps with a single gold star of a Red army Major General and a pair of jackboots. Sasha in her late twenties with shoulders length blonde hair with piercing black eyes that remained Karl of Dusk in some way.

"You mean watch as my Guards save your tin soldiers from Oseanians?" She chuckled as Erich gave a snort and ignored the smirking blonde major general completely and walked toward the table.

"Report!" Erich called to the officers.

"The Oseanian 19th Armored Corps and lead elements of the elite 77th Parachute brigade have taken Sonthofen..." One reported before Erich interjected, "Yes I understand this! What is their strength?" He demanded.

"Thirty-thousand strong in total with a divisions worth tanks and self propelled, Including twenty-nine A34 Comet's and fourteen Black Prince heavy tanks. The remainder is a mismatch of Sherman and Cromwell's of various make and model. They have air support as well as heavy artillery..."

"What is our strength?" Erich asked them.

"A Kampfgruppe worths. Four hundred men, Four heavy MG-42's, couple of mortars, Three Marder III's, and two Jagdtigers." Another replied.

Erich sighed and threw his hands on the table to hold himself up as he reviewed the map. "What is the estimated time of arrival for the rest of the 66th and 17th divisions?"

"Five Hours..." Sasha said coldly.

Screaming shells and rockets sail above them as the sounds of artillery began to bombard the small village of Marlow. Karl looked out of the broken glass windows of the church to see men diving into defensive positions as the sounds of sporadic rifle and machine gun fire crackled in the lulls of the barrage. Dust from the battered and beaten church fell on the officers and the trio below. "Out! Out! Schell! Schell!" Erich yelled as the shelling ceased and the clanking of steel tracks, ear piercing crack of tank guns, and the barking of MG-34 machine guns took over the battlefield.

Karl looked all around him to see only destruction and chaos around him. Building obliterated and burned... Bodies of men ripped to pieces by shrapnel...

"Karl! Ben! Get out of the open!" Erich shouted as the main gun round of Oseanian tank hit the bell tower of the church, Causing the tower to fall from the heavens down to earth. Karl instantly jumped toward Ben and Erich, Throwing them out of the way of the falling bell tower.

Dust filled the air, but the sound of the falling bell tower was defined by the blast of the Jagdtiger's 128 mm main guns. Karl found himself on top of Ben and Erich as the shouting of Sasha caught his attention, "Get comrade Zorin out of here!" She shouted to the troops as Karl and Ben were thrown to their feet by Estovakian troops. The dust covered Karl looked around feverishly for his henry, but to no avail.

"Take my Broom-handle!" Erich shouted as the troops pulled him to his feet. Erich tossed Karl his pistol belt with a large leather holster, Inside was a pristine Mauser C-96 'Broom-handle' pistol. "Take it! Ahhugh!" Erich shouted as the sighs of a broken leg. The troops took him to the rear as Karl and Ben were pushed to the front by the Tokareva wielding Sasha as she rallied on the troops of the army as they fought on against the almost endless waves of lead from the Oseanian troops firing Italian submachine guns and American M1 Rifles as they moved forward.

Charging to the front, Ben took a battered and blood stained StG-44 from a fallen grenadier and began to fire wildly at the endless stream of olive and white uniformed Oseanians as they crossed the snow covered fields and ducking behind the burning hulks of destroyed tanks and half tracks. Karl looked on in awe around him as the battle raged on in front of him and Ben. He could see and feel the determination of the soldiers of Estovakia as they fought on against the fury of the Oseanian assault.

The Marder III's picked off lead armored units, while the Jagdtigers ripped mellon sized holes into the heavier Black Princess from well beyond their effective ranges. Black smoke and fires from the Black Prince's dotted the country side, as did the turrets from Jack-in-the-boxed Shermans from the quick firing Marder III's.

"Fight on for the glory of our Motherland! URA!" Sasha shouted to the troops as another wave of Oseanian's came to bolster the assault. Rockets from Tulip's, Sherman tanks mounted with 76mm rockets, soared into the skies above the battlefield and dived down on the large and cumbersome Jagdtiger's in their pre-made firing positions. The first Jagdtiger burned solar orange as a single rocket hit the engine deck and the fuel tank, causing the fuel tank to explode along with the ammunition. The second was lucky, somewhat, with a rocket striking the mantle and destroying the mighty Pak-44 cannon. The crews of the Marder's repositioned quickly one at a time, while the other two covered him, But one by one the situation became direr as one after another the Marder's were picked off by the experienced crewmen of the Oseanian armored corp... But the men and women of the Estovakian army never let up.

Never faltered...

Never yielded...

Never gave up...

The machine guns never fell silent, neither did the enemy...

Hours felt like days, but they never stopped fighting...

Karl and Ben fired at anything wearing the pale olive green of an Oseanian trooper. The Chaos of war surrounded them, yet the two men, The mortal and immortal, fought on.

The remaining Marder III continued firing from a destroyed farm house, taking three more Sherman tanks and disabling a Black Prince, but was silenced by the shrapnel of another rocket attack. Karl watched as the crewmen of the Marder were cut to pieces by the molten steel of the rocket and thrown to the ground below like rag dolls. The final shell left the muzzle of the Marder defiantly as another Sherman burst into flames in front of him.

Over the horizon came three more Sherman tanks lead by a Black Prince flying the blue and white flag of Osean on its radio antenna. The men of the ravaged battalion, This Kampfgruppe, was reduced down to only one hundred men. For Five hours they fought without a single sign of what remained of the 33rd Panzer Corps, nor that of the 66th and 17th Divisions...

"Ingett Hopp... No Hope." A solider said to him as the last of his ammunition ran dry. Karl looked at the man and what remained of the Marder III, "Take my mauser and keep fighting! Fight for Estovakia or nothing!" Karl shouted as he gave the trooper his pistol and belt. The trooper looked at him questionably, but turned back to killing the enemy. Some of the soldiers around him saw this and began to cheer in between the fight.

"Estovakia or nothing!" They shouted together.

"Ben! Come on! To the gun! We have panzers to crack!" Karl shouted as he took Ben by the shoulder and dragged him to his feet. Under heavy fire the two charged threw the trenches and toward the derelict Marder III as the men of the Landwehr gave out the battle cry once more, "Estovakia or Nothing! URA!" Machine gun fire chased Ben and Karl as they reached the Marder III's crew compartment, "Load it!" Karl called. "Are you sure you can use this thing?" Ben shouted.

"Yes," Karl yelled as he handed Ben a 75 mm AP shell. "Now load it!" Karl demanded as he openned the breech. Ben threw the shell into the gun and Karl took aim at the lead tank and fired. The Pak 40 fired flawlessly, but Karl's aim was off by a touch and smashed into the Sherman to the left of the command tank. The Sherman began to smoke and soon the crew abandoned their "Tommie Cooker".

"Load it! Load it!" Karl demanded as he adjusted the gun. "Roger!" Ben shouted as he loaded another round into the gun. The click of breech alerted Karl again and took aim near the front of the Black prince's center side in hopes of penetrating the ammunition rack in the floor. Another orange ball of light screamed out of the barrel and slammed into the other Sherman, knocking it out of action for good.

"Fuck! APCR damn it! Black tipped rounds to the right! Load it!" Karl yelled as he dialed in gun one more time... In the sight he could see the massive Black prince turn it turret toward him, but Karl didn't flinch...

The shell screamed out of the gun at breakneck speed and seemed to skate across the snow covered fields that surrounded Marlow. The PzG 40 Tungsten APCR round cut threw the gun mantle of the Black Prince like a plasma cutter, bouncing around inside of the crew compartment and striking the ammunition rack. The explosion ignited the fuel tanks as well and the turret shot into the air in a fire ball until crushing into the field below. Karl cheered as the Black prince burned in front of him. He looked over the shield and saw the Oseanian troops retreating before him. The thunder of aircraft engines caught his attention and he turned around just as a Focke-Wulf 190G fighter bomber flew over him. Soon more Fw-190's and Stuka dive bombers appeared and began attacking the retreating Oseanian's.

Men of the 66th and 17th relived the battered and tired Kampfgruppe and Ben and Karl could finally rest easy for the first time in hours. Karl and Ben sat together on the totaled Marder III to rest and gather their thoughts.

Karl couldn't speak and only leaned on the gun shield watching the Panther tanks of the 17th Panzer Grenadiers and the T-34-85's of the 66th Guards march forward along with troops in a counter attack against the XIX Corps.

"Karl," An exhausted, muddy, bloody, dusty, and snow covered Ben Ravencroft said. "Are you all right?"

"Yeah..." Karl said as stepped down from the Marder. "Just a little... Strange right now... Something has been awaken in me... I can feel it..." Karl said quietly as he looked down at his hands and all around him.

"Ben Ravencroft!" Sasha shouted to Ben. "Zorin has requested you to the medical tent. Don't keep him waiting." She told him. Karl gave Ben a solum nod and he soon followed Sasha across the village to the medical tent set up near a burned down farm house. Inside the tent were countless troops getting treatment from various doctors and nurses, including Erich who was bed ridden with a broken leg.

"Erich, How is your leg?" Ben asked him. "Broken, but not that broken." Erich replied. Ben and Erich looked at each other for a brief moment before Erich gave a reluctant sigh.

"Arkbird, He's in Arkbird. Bandit country in Osean Without him the gate is worthless."

* * *

_**OK! Here is a little guide to the Nations and who they represent.**_

_**Belka- Germany**_

_**Volkhov- Russia**_

_**Estovakia is a federation between the two nations.**_

_**Osean- France, Britain, and italy**_

_**Emmeria- America**_


	10. Chapter 10:Gesellen Weg

_**The first part of this Chapter is giving a brief run down of events after the Second Marlow Tank War in Chapter 4: Krieg and later three weeks after.**_

_**If your a History buff or a gun nut like me, I would love to chat with you **_

_**Sorry for the long wait, the holidays as well as Black friday, had to work it -_- , came in the way of it all :(**_

_**With Love ~Dresner **_

* * *

The Oseanian XIX Armored Corps advance into Estovakia came to a screeching halt once they reached the village of Marlow. The lead vanguard of a battalions worth of men and a handful of tanks was bleed white by the four hundred man Kampfgruppe of Estovakian soldiers defending the village of Marlow, while the remainder was wiped out completely by Fighter-Bombers of the Estovakian Air Force (E.A.F) and the main force of the XIX Corps mauled by Stuka's as well as the Focke Wulf 190's. The Kampfgruppen was soon relieved by friendly forces and launched a fierce counter attack in the hours following the assault on Marlow. Taking advantage of the confusion and air cover, The 17th and 66th Division of the Estovakian Army encircled and annihilated the Oseanian force taking 7,000 men as prisoners of war. The Second Marlow Tank war marked a turning point in Verusean Continental War as Estovakia was once again on the offensive and the first obstacle in bringing this war to an end was the Oseanian occupied city of Sonthofen.

Leading the Assault was the premiere armored division of the Estovakian elite troops, The Iron Guard 1st Panzer Division, The thirty thousand strong "Dinsmark" division lead by Erich Zorin. Zorin's Panzers were rerouted from their stations near the former capital of Belka, Dinsmark, fifty miles southeast from Marlow, and drove through the night to muster with the 17th and 66th divisions to form the II Panzer Corps and begin the push toward Sonthofen.

The Second Battle of Marlow was three weeks ago and yet Karl could remember it all in vivid detail..

He could smell the burning fuel and gun power in the air as well as the blood from the dying and dead men and women who dotted the fields. The fields outside of the village of Marlow were nothing but bare dirt and slush from the snow. What remained of the snow was stained crimson with the blood of the fallen Oseanians and black from oil of their war machines. Scattered across the field for at least two miles were the burning hulks of Oseanian armor. Karl counted fourteen destroyed tanks, or at least that is how much he thought by the clouds of black smoke pouring out of the crew hatches. 'Their has to be more of them.' He thought to himself as he looked around the fields for more. The sound of burning fires, the thunder of aircraft engines in the sky, and cries of wounded men filled his ears.

Karl had to come to terms with reality, He was at war...

Ben later rejoined Karl and told him of a man in a town just across the border between the Waring nations of Estovakia and Osean, Arkbird, and that a man by the name of Harlan Ellison could lead them to the gate back to the mortal world, But Karl was skeptical at first but his options were limited. Greatly limited...

First on foot, holding on for dear life on the back of a panzer, and then back on foot. Karl and Ben made their way through the almost endless farmland and into the thick woods of Northeastern Estovakia's red forest heading toward the Esto-Oseanian Border.

* * *

The howling winters wind wived through the thick red pines and oaks of the snow covered forest as Karl rapped the flaps of his cap around his ears to protect from the cold. "I'm glad this was that chest in the Summerland." He said to himself as fastened the finally button under his chin. Karl's toque was rapped round his neck and pulled it over his nose to protect his face from harsh wind as well as conceal his identity, sitting in gully surely didn't help stop the wind. Even the warmth of his black and blood stained overcoat or the flannel lined green Osean tunic he took from a raid on a supple cart didn't help him.

For seven day's Karl and Ben have ridden out a massive snow storm that swallowed up the whole of Northeast Estovakia and the border towns of Osean. The depth of the snow, as well as the low visibility, have paralyzed almost all forms of movement expect foot soliders and house drawn transport. From what Karl could gather the Red forest was a dead zone, a place where no one trekked, which was strange to Karl. The number and variety of wild game he observed over the week was a hunter paradise for an advent hunter such as himself. Wild boar, European red deer, White tail deer, Elk, Mule dear, Grizzly bear, Timber wolves, and more that roamed the forests around him. The terrain was a mix between small rocky hills and flat green field as well as the high mountains of the Waldreich mountain range cutting the across skyline in the lulls of the storm. For seven days in the hostile wilderness of northwest Estovakia, Karl became one with the land and its wild inhabitants. He knew the trails, the patterns, the territory, and the dangers lying just ahead. All in seven days!

The rhythmic sound of human foot steps on snow caught Karl's attention and he grabbed the blood stained and dirty sturmgewehr from the snow. His rifle was rapped in strips of white around the front and stock to blend into the snow as well as the light removable scope mounted on the gun. Karl picked it up from Ben after the second battle of marlow as a token of gratitude and Ben's inability to hit anything with the damn thing and Karl made it his own personal weapon. From putting down whitetail to an Oseanian foot solider, Karl made great use of it. The rifle fed the two more than once and even clothed them with warm deer, elk, and wolf pelts. Karl took position near a fallen pine tree at the far end of the gully and poked the end of the rifle out of the lighter end of the tree's thick pine needles. Through his scope he could see the outline of three men walking down the near by main road with rifles in hand. Karl switched the safety off of his weapon and wait patiently with his hand gripped tightly around the grip with trigger finger frozen in place, waiting for the right moment. As the men came into view, Karl could see the dark grey of a friendly uniform covered with white winter camouflage as well as their Volkhovian made PPS submachine guns and SVT rifles. He clicked the safety back on and climbed out of the gully to greet the Estovakian soliders.

"Privyet!" He shouted to the soliders, who in turn quickly trained their guns on the armed Karl. The soliders rushed to him with guns still trained on him as the came closer. "Friendly! I'm friendly! Ich bin freundlich! Freundlich!" Karl barked at the soliders before they were interrupted by the trotting of horses. The soliders became passive as a group of large tan and black Don horses with Cossack warriors with thick beards and brandishing rifles. The Cossacks, from what Karl read in books in the mortal world, are eastern slavic people with a history of Self- Governing and known for their talent as horsemen. They dressed in Khaki-green or field grey overcoats with fur hats with the gold iron cross of the Iron guard on front. Karl counted at least seven cossacks and yet nine horses, strange considering that there was only three dismounted cossacks.

"At ease." A voice said as the cossacks moved to the side to let a Black Don with white strip going down its face. The rider wore a black overcoat with a toque covering the face of the figure and a black crusher cap with golden yellow piping with the shoulder straps of a Major general. The figures eyes were covered with goggles, yet karl could feel them on him like a hungry wolf. "I know him..." The figure said as he, or whoever it was, pulled the toque down to revile a familiar face with a man eater grin that made Karl melt a little inside. The face was almost a perfect copy of his muse Dusk, complete with the little dot on her left cheek. She removed her goggles to revile the same piercing black eyes as her, but with out the heavy eye shadow above them.

"Dusk? Is that you?" Karl whispered in shock.

"Who's Dusk?" The woman asked. "My name is Sasha if you haven't forgotten." She replied rudely.

Karl's hopes were dashed a little, but he couldn't help but give a annoyed growl. "Someone I know back in my world," He replied. "What are you doing here?"

Sasha gave an arrogant chuckle and threw him a backpack, "To give you this." Sasha replied.

Karl opened the bag to find rations, canteens, a large hunting knife, packages of ammunition, compass, and a map. Karl looked over at Sasha with a little smile, "A resupply eh? Or is this a gift?"

"A resupply," She replied as she dismounted her horse with one of the armed Cossacks. The Cossack held a case in hand and Sasha opened it promptly. Inside were various decorations and a smaller box as well. "And a presentation."

"Karl, for the destruction of three enemy panzers. I present to you the Tank destruction on three accounts." Sasha said as she pulled three destroyer badges from the box. Karl pulled his coat off to one side and let her pin all three of them on his right shoulder. She turned back to the box and pulled the small her case out. "For courage under fire and bravery, I present to you the Iron cross 1st class." Sasha took the iron cross out of the box and pined it to his chest. The Cossacks saluted and each shook Karl hands and thanked him.

Karl felt honored to be award this medal, let alone the badges for tank killing. Medals like the Iron cross were usually award to soliders for their bravery under fire and only rarely awarded to civilians, This was a stepping stone for him and Karl could feel it. "Thank you for aiding the people of Estovakia in our struggle, In our eyes you are our brother in arms and we hope that you think of us as the same." Sasha said as she shook his hand firmly.

"Now where is Ben Ravencroft?" She asked as she turned and mounted her Don. "At our camp just two kilometers from here." Karl replied as he took his rifle off of his back and held it in his hands. "Come, I'll take you there. Hopefully Ben is finished cooking our meal, Eh?" Karl gave a little chuckle as he and the Cossacks walked off the main road and through the woods.

* * *

Ben Ravencroft sat calmly rapped in his black trench coat lined with wolves and rabbits fur for warmth with a hood covering his head and ears from the cold. Even in front of a warm fire with a hot iron pot full of stew couldn't get the ice in his ghostly veins to melt. Ben was a man of many secrets and interests, some of which made his writing such a success in the mortal world. One of those interests was cooking, which he was rather good none the less. He sat on a stump in front of the boiling iron pot as it hung from atop a warm fire with a hand crafted wooden spoon in his hand to stir the stew. Two tents across from the fire made out of branches and covered in pelts from deer and bear to protect the men from the snow and cold. It was a quaint little camp made by the two journeymen in such a short amount of time.

The sound of trotting horses through the thick snow caught his attention and turned around calmly to see Karl with a team of Cossacks behind him. "Welcoming committee, eh Karl?" Ben asked him. "Nyet, Ravencroft." Sasha respond as her and her Cossacks took lead to meet with Ben. Sasha presented Ben with an Iron Cross just as she did with Karl, but less formal and rather rushed as she walked back to her house, until the sound of rumbling stomachs of her men and herself caught her attention. Ben and Karl chuckled, "Come Sasha, there is plenty of stew to go around. I'm sure of it. " Ben offered as he dipped a cup into the pot and handed it to Sasha promptly. Karl dug into the bag to retrieve a spoon, but saw Sasha turning down the cup of warm deer stew.

"No No No, I have to be go..." Sasha resisted before Karl placed a spoon in the cup for her. "Please, Take some. At least let your men eat, they fight just as hard as everyone else. It's a shame to let brave men starve." Karl politely protested as he took a spoon full of stew for himself from Sasha's cup. She looked a little surprised at Karl and opened her mouth to reply, but nothing came out but a slow cold breath. Her dark eyes twinkled in the light of the evening sun as it began to drop behind the back drop of the tail, snow covered, pine and oak trees.

The wind died down, Thankfully, and the group sat around the fire with old metal cups or helmets filled with stew and looks of enjoyment and pleasure on their faces. Sasha was a little reluctant at first, but after a while she began to open up a little at a time as each member of her Cossacks as well as Karl and Ben began to tell stories of their past, telling jokes, singing songs, and even sharing vodka rations and cigarettes. Through out the night, Karl moved closer to Sasha and she noticed this, but, decided not to say anything about and only gave slight glares and a little smile as he told a few stories about his friends from life in the other world. Ravencroft didn't say much though until Karl ask him.

As one of the cossacks finished his story about his cow, strangely named pig, Karl looked over to Ben. "Ben, why don't you tell us one of your stories?"

Ben shook his head with a chuckle, "No, no, no. It's ok Karl."

"Come on Ravencroft! At least tell us something! We've all shared something, why not get with the group eh?" Karl nagged on. Two of the Cossacks urged him on as well and handed him a bottle of vodka to drink from to ease his nerves. Ben shrugged and took a heavy drink from the bottle before collecting his thoughts to tell a story.

"Bah, I can't remember a thing from my days as a writer!" Ben shrugged drunkenly, The man could never hold his drink. "But I can tell you a story non the less!" Ben said as he took another strong swig from the vodka bottle. Karl smirked as he could see the liquor was jarring his memory, he could hear it in the slurs.

"Once their was a man... A Handsome man! Ah hell a devilishly handsome man! Named... Uhh... Ben! Yes, Ben, Ben was his name." Ben spoke in drunken slurs as he began his life story. Karl knew a little about Ben Ravencroft, the world only knew a little about him. Ravencroft was very secretive about his past, but one thing that he knew about Ben was his obsessiveness about anything paranormal. It was his obsession that brought him to the gates of hell...

Ben Ravencroft was born in Oakhaven and lived in the small town until he was about seventeen when he graduated early from Oakhaven High School at the top of his class with a talent for writing. He then traveled to Scotland on a scholarship to further his education and even publish his first book, "Blood Banker", in his freshman year alone. Soon Ben wrote more titles such as "Den of the Bear", "Hearts of Iron", "Desiree", and more with his flagship, his main book, "Dead Mall", in the years after his graduation from Collage. While in collage he began to write about the paranormal and collected a vast amount of literature on the paranormal from his travels around Europe. But something during his time reading about the paranormal he began to stumble upon a secret history of his family connection to the paranormal and the supernatural. He soon uncovered vast amounts of knowledge unknown to historians or paranormal scholars of which lead to notable attention being drawn to his discovers by a one Alexsandr Magnason who, in exchange for his information, began to give Ben information on a one "Sarah Ravencroft".

"Then... Then Ben beat the bastard back to hell and came here! The end!" Ben shouted in drunken joy as he fell off of the stump and pasted out behind it. The Cossacks laughed and hooted as much as they could and resumed their story telling. Karl stood up smirk on his face and turned to walk away from the fire for a moment. Sasha put her hand on his arm and Karl turned around to see a twinkle in Sasha's dark eyes as she asked where he was going.

"I'm going for a little stroll through the woods, It helps me ease my nerves a little." Karl responded as he turned his head forward to keep his eyes from locking with those familiar black eyes.

Sasha looked over at the cackling Cossacks and the snoozing Ravencroft briefly before rolling her eyes, "Mudak." She remarked in resentful tone at the drunkenness of the horsemen. "Do you mind if I join you?" She asked in a polite, yet quest tone. Karl stood like a stone with his back to her, Emotionless and hard, But on his face was a troubled and sympathetic look on his face. He could feel her hand gripped firmly on his arm, but it wasn't in a hostel way. Karl turned around slowly and saw the Blonde black eyed Sasha looking at him concern in her eyes that reminded him of Luna in some ways.

"Ja, das können Sie." He said nervously in German and motioned with his head for her to come with him. "Thank you." She replied with her hand still on his arm.

* * *

Karl and Sasha walked down a deer trail Karl found near the camp. The moon was half full and glared through the cracks of thick brush and reflected beautifully off of the snowy forest floor. "Such a beautiful night, Don't you agree?" Sasha asked Karl as the sound of the laughing Cossacks and the cracking of the fire began to fad under the sound of their boots crunching the snow. "Yeah, It is." Karl replied coldly as they continued on though the dark woods. Sasha gave a sigh and looked over to Karl, "You look troubled, Karl. Is their something wrong?" She asked him.

"Nah... Just enjoying the night, you know?" Karl said with a tired sigh.

Sasha shook her head, "No, I believe their is something bothering you." She took out a sliver case with the orthodox christian crossbar and opened it to reveal perfectly rolled cigarettes with a pack of matches. "Do you mind if I smoke?" She asked Karl as she took out the match book and a cigarette. "Nein, ist alles gut. Mind if I have one to ease my nerves a bit?" Karl asked as Sasha gave him her cigarette and she pulled another from the case. She lite Karl's for him and Karl returned the favor like gentlemen do. Karl took a deep drag off of his cigarette and let it out slowly get the full flavor of it all, "Thanks, It's been awhile since I had a smoke." Karl remarked.

"It's not a problem," Sasha replied. "You are a hero for what you did in Marlow. You know that?"

"I'm not a hero. Just filling a gap in the line." Karl replied coldly.

"What do you mean? You went though the Oseanian fire with out a worry, rallied the men, and manned the gun on the Marder like a veteran Tankist! Your a legend Karl." Sasha exclaimed to Karl.

"I'm not a damn legend, a hero, or anything. I'm just a man with a goal." Karl said as he finished his smoke and put it out against the bark of a near by tree and began to walk away.

"What would that be Karl?" Sasha asked him abruptly. Karl paused and turned slow back to Sasha who stood with the look of confusion.

"Returning home. Returning to the woman I love, back to her... Back to Dusk."


	11. Chapter 11:Reise in die Zeile

**_Yes, I reorganized the story for less jumping around. Over all I'm glad to say that christmas is coming soon :) _**

**_Merry Christmas to you all :)_**

**_With Love ~Dresner _**

* * *

The II Panzer Corps pushed relentlessly toward Sonthofen proved unyielding in there advance, as did their commander, Erich Zorin. The Oseanian's proved to be a stubborn and determine adversary, especially in the defense, only giving ground when it was absolutely needed and made sure the Estovakians paid a heavy price in men and machinery. The E.A.F gave no quarter to the retreating Oseanians and harassed them at every turn, Bombing bridges to slow them down, strafing columns of infantry, and keeping a watchful eye on them every chance they got. The Oseanian's were lucky, in some cases, to avoid being cut off, encircled, and annihilated.

Every mile, every yard, every inch the Oseanian retreated, The "Dinsmark" division gain four times that. But the aristocratic Belkan elements of the Army ordered Maj. General Zorin to halt his advance and wait for elements of the Corps to regroup and at least catch up with the 1st Panzer. Erich argued about the delays saying that if they stopped for even a moment, The Oseanians would only tighten their grip on Sonthofen. High command ignored his pleads and ordered the army to halt their advance and consolidate their forces. Delay, after Delay, after Delay began to annoy Zorin and soon he broke radio contact with High command and pushed on, Only to refuel and rearm via supple drops from the E.A.F and captured fuel depots to keep the war machines moving.

After Marlow the Oseanian's tighten their grip on Sonthofen and established a heavy defense in the river city's former medieval fortifications and a HQ in Castle Gotha, situated in the Southeast bend of the river Lay. The city of Sonthofen was situated on the banks of Lay river and is know through out the former country of Belka as "Covelenz", "At the merging of rivers" in its basic latin form, because of the position of the city at the fork between the Lay and Güls rivers. Since the border between Osean and The new nation of Estovakia is divided between the Waldreich mountains in the north and the Lay river, and since the city sets on both banks of the river lay, the city has been disputed between Osean and the former nation of Belka. The city was renown for its wonderful wine and save port from bandits who prowl on the Oseanian side of the river, But besides trade, land, and booze, They city held the honor of being the home of King Ludwig Gosler, The Father of and first king of Holy Belka in 1013 A.D. The old guard of the former Belkan Landwehr regarded the liberation of Sonthofen as a moral imperative, while the Volkhovians only saw their attempts as nothing but a vanity and demanded a push though the Waldreich mountains to avoid the hassle of marching head long into a slugging match with a dug in and prepared Oseanian force laying wait for them to come.

But that did not faze the fanatical descendants of the Belkan Knights or the Sons of the Federation itching for a fight to finally prove themselves to the old guard once and for all. Nor did it stop the Volkhovian born Generals from sending four regiments into the mountains...

Karl and Ben soon left their camp with Sasha and her Cossacks in the early morning hours to make up for lost time. The snow storm had subsided and made travel on horse back somewhat bearable, especially with warm pelts and furs to warm their bodies from the heavy winds once they exited the forrest and into rolling country side as they headed east toward the Border. They gained an amazing amount of ground in only two days and could see the Waldreich mountain range in the distance as they cut across the sky, along with Oseanian and Estovakian planes dogfighting above it's snow covered peaks. Sasha declared that going though the mountains was the only logical decision, but after seeing the fireballs of falling planes crashing into the mountains and the intensity of the melee above. The group decided to take the longer rout down Route 19 toward highway 4 leading to Sonthofen

* * *

"After we engaged Amsel, Claudia interrupted the song and left the door parochially open. But Ben did not appear and it was just me and him." Karl said, as he finished his story of how he came here to Verusea. "I threw myself in the portal, for what reason I am not sure. Nor am I sure if I was either right or wrong. But I'm alive…" Karl's voice became remorseful and regretful. "And I guess I should be thankful."

For over an Hour, Karl and Sasha have spoke to one another for what seemed to be an eternity. Riding on horseback was eventful, and Karl enjoyed himself greatly, but besides paying attention to the beast between your legs and watching for ruminates of Oseanian troops lurking in the woods near by, There wasn't much to pass the time.

Sasha was curious about the strange and odd sounding outsider in the black coat and cap. He carried himself differently than other men she met over the corse of her life. Karl didn't appear to be arrogant in any known form, as far as she could see, and preferred to stay to himself. He was cold to some degree, but warm and friendly when the time was right. Karl was an enigma to the confidant and aristocratic Maj. General, both as a solider and as a man. Something was troubling him and causing him to be on edge, She could see this in his castleton green eyes.

"You did the right thing," Sasha reassured him as their horses trotted calmly down the desolate highway. "From what you told me about this "Cyrus Amsel". It seems that he was an evil man. But, if I may ask, this "Ravencroft" you speak of. Is it the very man your company?" Sasha turned to look at Ben Ravencroft who rode just behind her with the Cossacks.

Karl nodded, "The very same, but Claudia thought otherwise and believed that his ancestor, Sarah Ravencroft, was going to comeback to the mortal world with Amsel's help. It turns out that Ben killed her and made his home in the world of the Black Sun." Karl replied as he remembered braving the mountains and meeting Ravencroft for the first time in his castle.

"The world of the Black sun… You mean the Schwarze Sonne, The world of the internal light… You… You saw it?" Sasha said in shock and disbelief.

"Yes… I was there… It was beautiful." Karl said as Sasha came closer to him. Karl became a little uncomfortable as the look in her eyes became that of bystander at a zoo gazing over an exotic animal. "There is where I met Ben and where Amsel met his end."

"What happen to Amsel?" She asked him.

"Ben killed him like a dog, left him laying on the floor in a pool of blood." Karl said coldly as sighs of war began to appear in roadway as holes from heavy cannon and machine gun fire began to dot the asphalt like the burrows of the american prairie dog. Tree's were torn to tatters by bomb fragments and machine gun rounds, littering the pavement as well as the shell casings from 30mm cannons and the casings to cluster bombs. The skid marks of out of control vehicles and dirt covered caterpillar tracks were just as propionate as the shell and bomb craters. He followed a set of tracks leading off the road and, to his surprise, to see a derelict Sherman tank covered with holes the size of oranges or grapefruit.

"Luck wasn't on his side, thats for sure." Karl said as he stopped his horse to look at the abandon tank. "Looks like the pilot went though a lot of trouble to knock out this tin can." Ben remarked as he and the cossacks approached Karl and Sasha. Sasha gave a concerned look and galloped ahead of the group over a small rise in the road to scout ahead, but she stopped at the top of hill and turned back to signal her comrades to join her. As the group approached her they began to feel uneasy as the confidant look that dominated Sasha beautiful face disappeared and a new, rather troubling, look of shock and bewilderment loomed on her shoulders.

"There's more Gentlemen…." Sasha said in a whisper as they reached the top of the hill.

Over a thousand destroyed vehicles, Civilian and Government, littered the highway for over four miles. Burning hulks of steel shot to pieces by cannon fire, tanks ripped asunder by rockets, soot from burning fuel trucks blackening the road way, and endless derelict vehicles as far as the eye could see. It look almost like a scene from an apocalypse film where thousands of people attempted to escape a cataclysm. The air around them was thick with the metallic odors of Blood & Iron, the fumes of Gasoline, the smooth scent of gun powder, and the dominating smell of High octane aircraft fuel lingering in the air over the destruction that lay before them.

"They were running away…" Ben said in disbelief, "Look at where they are heading…"

"Who were they?" Karl asked Sasha in hope that she could explain, But she shrugged her shoulders. "I have no idea…"

She turned to Ben, "Ben, Go check the markings on the Sherman in the drainage ditch. That might give us an idea of who we might be looking at…"

Sasha voice sounded horrified at the sight before her, It surprised Karl especially after her display of courage at the seconded battle of Marlow just four weeks before.

"This has to be the Oseanian 18th , That Sherman was Lend-Lease from Emmeria. I know it's hull, its the A4 model. God I fucking hope it's those barbarians!" She said in excitement as she watched Ben hope off his horse and run to the wreak in the ditch.

"18th Armored?" Karl asked her as she tried to hold in her excitement as Ben mounted his horse headed back to the group. "The 18th "Red Devils" ambushed my Guards division a few years back and took a few of my female comrades a prisoner…" Sasha said as her voice began to fill with hate as she spoke of her painful memories during the early years of the Continental war. "During the initial invasion in 39', The Oseanians encircled my unit in a village near the former Belkan-Volkhovian border. We held out until we finally ran out of ammunition and food. So I order the unit to disperse into the country side and regroup with any friendly units they could find, But the Oseanians swooped in and killed a majority of my troops and kept the women. I forced to watch as my female comrades were raped on mass in front of me…." Sasha became quiet and Karl could almost see the intense hatred irradiate from her voice and eyes as her aura became burning red.

"I escaped their hands before I too was forced into sexual slavery for those godless barbarians… But I had to end the shame and suffering of my comrades before they were shipped off to Osean itself…" She said as her Aura shifted from red to blue, depression and remorse.

"You killed them, didn't you?" Karl asked her bluntly. Sasha nodded and her eyes began to become glassy as if she were about to cry, But she sucked it up as Ben returned with the news.

"Their Osean alright, the Blue and white roundels prove so." Ben reported to an anxious Sasha.

"I know they are Osean, you fucking baboon! What I'm asking is their division? What division are they?!" She demanded arrogantly.

Ben growled under his breath and reluctantly answered back to the arrogant blonde clad in field grey, "Devil! A smiling devil!" Ben yelled and Sasha burst open with pride and rode down the road at a brisk pace, jumping over fallen trees and weaving pass turned over civilian cars to the hulks of destroyed and abandon Oseanian trucks and tanks. Karl, Ben, and the Cossacks took off behind her as she laughed at the destruction around her and cursing at the burned and dismembered bodies of the Oseanians in her native tongue.

It was disturbing to even the battle harden Cossacks and the two journeymen, but they said nothing as they passed though this highway of death.

* * *

The silence was deafening and no one but Sasha spoke as they neared a in the road where route 19 merged into highway to Sonthofen. The heavy clanking and roar of panzers echoed though the forrest as they reached the main highway and soon Sasha began to wave, which was puzzling to Ben and Karl. But the Cossacks soon over took them and joined Sasha at the front and they too began to wave down the Highway toward the sound of machinery. As Ben and Karl joined them they saw, to their amazement, a massive column of Panther and Tiger tanks with several other tanks and support vehicles of various origin and make traveling down the highway.

"That's the Dinsmark division, Great." Sasha said with a disappointed sigh as old Black, White, and Yellow Belkan banner flew from the lead King Tiger tank. The members of the group galloped to the lead King tiger and sasha asked to speak to the commander of the tank element, To her surprise the oil and dirt covered commander in full pea pattern panzer uniform with a black cap just like Karl's. The commander wore the oak leaves of a Maj. general on his collar, a think scraggily beard dominated his face, and the cross around his neck spoke volumes on its own.

"I am the Commander Sasha." The commander said as he leaned out of the hatch of his mighty Tiger.

Sasha was a little shocked to see that the ragged commander was Erich Zorin and she try to return to her condescending demeanor toward him, But Erich gave a small smile and asked why she was not with the Volkhovian forces toughing it out in the froze peaks of the Waldreich mountains. She merely responded with a simple statement, "Fuck you Erich", and left Karl and Ben with Zorin and the Dinsmark Division.

Zorin did not mind at all, Ben and Karl were comrades in his eyes. Two joined four other soliders as they rode on top of the Tiger tank and the column pushed on down the highway. Erich sat up right and out of the hatch to chat with his comrades from the bar as two light Panzer III N's scouted ahead.

"Gentlemen! How have the both of you been? I haven't seen you since Marlow and I see you have already made a name for yourselves!" Erich said joyfully as he shook Karl and Ben's hands firmly in congrats for their decorations.

"I was there at Marlow, You did good comrade." A trooper said.

"Ja! You fought bravely! Like a hero!" A younger one said confidently. An older Sargent laughed, "Medals grow in the trees, son. Right where they bury heroes."

Karl gave a small smile and said nothing as he scanned over the convoy. The Panthers, Tigers, and Panzer IV's were all covered in foliage, camouflage netting, or painted in a pea pattern or zebra style of multicolored brown, darkish yellow, and green patterns. Flakpanzers, Anti-Aircraft tanks, of various calibers scanned the skies with their barrels pointing in all directions, as were the heads of every man in the company. Everyone, even Ben, looked optimistic and a little bit cocky in some cases.

"Erich! Where are you heading?" Karl called to Erich, who pointed up to an over pass where a large sigh hung that read "Sonthofen".

"To free our kin in Sonthofen and plant this flag on the bell tower!" Erich said with confidence as he took up the Belkan Banner and waved it proudly as his men cheered. "And what are we going to do with those Oseanian dish rags brothers?!"

"_We'll send'em it over, dripping red, to Queen Liza and her ladies!" _The troops responded loud and proud as chuckles could be heard from far behind their tiger.

"Who Liza?" Karl asked Erich.

"Liza is King Samson, Or King Sarin as we know him, wife and mother to the future queens of Osean. Her ladies are her seven princesses who are off gallivanting in Emmeria so there cripple president can continue to send arms to them. Whatever happen to the family unit, eh?" Erich chuckled.

"Sarin... Nerve gas right?" Ben asked.

Erich nodded, "He used it against our men more than once, bastard... But we will make sure he doesn't do it again once we reach the capital and burn it to the fucking ground... No invader will ever use those weapons on Holy Belka again, EVER!"

All became quiet as the column marched forward toward the breech and into the fight once more. Karl couldn't help but ask him if he would live through the up coming battle... But he couldn't help but give a slight grin as the men passed him a package of cigarettes and began to sing in unison a tune of war.

_"Maybe I will make it though all this..." _He thought to himself.


	12. Chapter 12: Wieder geboren

_**I write this chapter in honor of a great inventor who made the most recognizable weapon in the history of the world, The AK-47. Mikhail Timofeyevich Kalashnikov has died on the 23rd of December 2013 at age 94. Even though he was a die hard Communist, I salute him for his service to his country and his wonderful design. Of which I have the honor of owning a AK myself.**_

_**R.I.P Mikhail Kalashnikov, November 15th 1919-December 23rd 2013**_

_**I dedicate the Song "We are the dead men" by Sol Invictous to Comrade Kalashnikov as well**_

_**Merry Christmas to you all as well as the passing...**_

_**Authors notes- Sonthofen is a real village in Southern Germany, But I based my version of the city off of my favorite town in all of Germany, Kolblenz along with some add ons to the city itself :)**_

_**With Love and Honor ~Dresner**_

* * *

_To whoever it may be..._

_23 December 1944, Sonthofen, Nord Belka_

_The sun is nonexistent, as is time itself. There is no morning here, only darkness and death. All around me is death... For three weeks we have fought in the streets, in the houses, in the rooms, in ourselves... There is no reprieve for them or us... There is no weakness, only strength. The strength to survive this wrenched place is the only thing that keeps the men and myself from placing the barrel to my mouth and ending it all...  
Burning flesh and boiling blood fills the air, as does the dust and smoke from the countless fires that burn across the city itself... _

_This fog, this cloud of hate and decay, is only broken by the endless monsoons of freezing rain and snow... But not even nature can extinguish the inferno that these two nations have created... All is destroyed, every building is nothing but a bombed shell or a pile of rubble. In this city, Houses are burning, walls, homes, buildings are falling down... The smoke from fires, the dust from the destruction makes the air unbreathable._

_We don't know where we are..._

_I can not sleep anymore, even in the brief lulls where no even the sound of a simple mouse couldn't be heard. I can not sleep... I dare not sleep...  
_

_I only hear suffering..._

_The inferno is the only light I have anymore to write this note to you, dear reader, whoever you might be. If this is Sasha... I want you to know that I am a troubled man, that my heart is in pain, now and then, and I wish I had the courage to give up this crazy journey of mine... But I simple can't... I have a woman of my own who I love and devoted to...  
_

_You remind me so much of her..._

_Thank you for being there, no matter how little a time it was._

_With Love, Karl Dael_

* * *

Karl stuffed the hand written note in his coat pocket and loaded a fresh magazine into his rifle as he looked out the window of the third apartment that his unit, 4th Panzer Grenadier regiment, one of the three regiments that made up **_Dinsmark_** divisions foot soliders.

The battle for Sonthofen began at 12:00am on December 2nd, 1944 with a orchestra of over seventy seven heavy artillery pieces of various make, model, and caliber along with forty rocket launchers of the famed Katyusha and "Screaming Mimi" (Nebelwerfer) variety launching a staggering two hour barrage on the eastern half of the city on the east bank of the lay river where a majority of the Oseanian's heavy 155mm "Long Tom" and Br-18 305mm siege guns sat on, most of which stayed in Fortress Gaustadt over looking the whole of the city atop of a rocky and tree covered hills that dominated the skyline of the city. The remaining buildings that managed to survive the years of bombing and the two hour midnight barrage were damage beyond all recognition and rubble filled the streets with stone and glass, as did the bodies of the Oseanian defends who littered the cobblestone roads of Old Sonthofen. A majority of the heavy guns and anti-aircraft weapons sat in the former medieval defenses that crowed the hills over looking the city, which proved to be an issue for the Belkan guns as the structures, yes being build during the 14th and 15th centuries, proved to be stronger than anticipated and the order to bring in large pieces resulted in the delivery of six massive 21 inch self propelled siege mortars called "Karl-Gerat's" added to break the defenses on 12th December. The **_Dinsmark_** division lead the assault on the city and was latter joined by its sister division, The 2nd IG Panzer Division "**_Götz von__ Berlichingen"_**,and the 103rd infantry division to reinforce the II Panzer Corps. Only Belkan forces came to the aid of the city as the Volkhovian units pushed into the mountains, of which included the 66th Infanty division that made up 13% of the II PZ Corps strength.

Sonthofen sat between two rivers, the Lay and Güls, with an island that split the rivers in two with the east and west banks held New Sonthofen with its Neo-Classical designs and beauty. While the island itself held Old Sonthofen, the original city, where large medieval and Romanesque architecture dominated the isle only to be broken by the unscathed Gothic cathedral that mirrored that of Chartres Cathedral in France with its elegant design with large dominating flying buttresses and two massive flamboyant spire on the west end on top of a tower. At its center was a bell tower that rose just above the 350ft tall spires by at least five or ten feet that cut across the skyline of the city and its hilly backdrop. The church was a national treasure to the people of new Estovakian Federation as it held both a place in the hearts of the Catholic Belkan Church and the Volkhovian Orthodox church as a home for all of the Estovakian people to come together as brothers and sisters of god to worship him as equals.

Karl remembers seeing posters of the church as a backdrop for propaganda posters throughout his journey and even listened to a few stories of admiration for the church itself by some of the grenadiers in his unit as they sat in the bombed out apartment, treating their wounds and taking a well earned breather from the "Rattenkreig", War of the rats, on the blood and ice covered streets of Sonthofen. For three agonizing weeks the men and women of the **_Dinsmark_ **division pushed the narrow streets, crumbling homes, and unrelenting fire from the Oseanian paratroopers in the city and have managed to take 78% of the city including West New Sonthofen and half of Old Sonthofen itself.

Through the window Karl could see the church, which was only ten city blocks away from his position, in the distance with its awe striking spires and flamboyant Gothic architecture as it stood peacefully among the war torn city. Even in the dying light of dusk, he could still see the church perfectly as the remaining sunlight and the newly rising full moon illuminated the church, as did the searchlights and muzzle flashes of heavy AA guns as they fired at E.A.F night bombers above. On the hills, around the island, and on the west bank Karl could see massive and erratic infernos burning in isolated sectors of city in both Liberated and occupied parts of the city. Both sides dropped fire bombs on the city during the battle, Karl saw first hand what napalm did to column or complex and lead to many sleepless nights. But Karl never slept... There never was a chance to sleep...

Karl looked into the dark above, there was no roof on the third floor, to see the light of the moon and stars breaking through the smoke that lingered over the city. He said nothing, but gave a brief smile before shouldering his rifle to take a brief cigarette break after a long five hour watch down the two rubble cover streets to the north and east. For three weeks Karl has fought side by side with men of the **_Dinsmark_ **division and 4th PG regment and fought with out question, unlike the reluctant Ben Ravencroft who was more interested in getting to Arkbird than fighting someone else'es war. But Ben stayed with Karl and tried to convince him to abandon the troops. Karl was disgusted with Ben and refused to speak to him on any terms, "This is our struggle now. Whether you like it or not we are now apart of this undertaking. Deal with it." Karl told him.

That was two weeks ago and Karl has not seen Ben since then.

Karl was loyal to his company and they returned it by giving him the title of Major after their commanding officer, A Major Schutzer, was killed by a sniper. He dawned a field grey uniform under his black trench coat with major's shoulder boards and four diamond collar tabs and replaced his panzer black cap with a grey crusher cap. Rapped around his neck was a light blue and white checkered scarf given to him by an unknown admirer with the initials C.A.M monogrammed on the ends of the scarf. The scent of french perfume radiated faintly from the scarf and remained him slightly of perfume that he gave to Dusk for their anniversary. It was knitted by hand, Karl could tell by the care that was taken into the knitting itself as well as the slight mistakes in the monogramming. It was warm and smelled of a different time... A time of love and dreams... A time that Karl called some of the best months of his long and troubled life.

"Herr Major," A Oberfelbwebel (Staff Sergeant) said with a firm salute, "Generalmajor Zorin is ordering our company to link up with his heavy panzers to push toward the church."

"What does intelligence have to say about the Paratroopers in the area?" Karl asked him after returning the Salute and returning back to the stark reality of being an officer.

"Herr Major, Recon has reported that the 77th airborne brigade has fallen back to defend the two bridges leading out of Old Sonthofen. The defenders are mostly the battered remains of 999th Infantry regiment and the remnants of the XIX Corps tanks. They shouldn't be a problem for our tigers!" The Oberdebwebel reported confidently.

"Don't be so sure Herr Oberfelbwebel," Karl said with cold honesty, "The Oseanian officer's maybe fools, but their NCO's are not. They can reorganize just as quickly as we can and can fight just as hard. Street fight seems to have brought the best out of them and those cracks and crevasses are now a death trap."

"Damn cockroaches." He replied spitefully.

"Gather up the company and prepare to move out at once. How are we on food and ammunition?" Karl asked in a fatherly tone.

"Rations are running low, but ammunition is abundant. As are grenades, demolition charges, and Panzerfaust launchers."

"Good." Karl replied with a nod as the screaming of four engine Grief bombers flying over head to attack positions on the eastern half of the city.

* * *

_**One Hour**_** Later...**

Karl lead a company of grenadiers though the war torn streets of Old Sonthofen with out running into a single Oseanian, thank god, and Rendezvous with Erich's Tigers just four blocks from his form forward outpost at the apartments. The sound of the idling petrol engines were muffled by the massive air raid by the Grief bombers and unwittingly covered their advance toward a store block and bakery that Erich allowed his men to raid for bread and food to feed his starving troops.

Standing on top of the lead king tiger, Erich observed with his field glasses the bombed out rubble that lay ahead and began giving orders to his radio man for the light Panzer III N's to scout ahead of his heavy tanks and mark the positions for the powerful 88mm guns of his tigergruppe. Behind his King tiger were two late model Tiger I's and a Wirbelwind Flakpanzer, Anti aircraft tank armed with four 20mm cannons, for support. Erich turned around to see the friendly figure of Major Karl Dael approaching his tiger and greeted him accordingly, "Glad to see you made it Karl. I was getting worried that the Oseanian pig's ambushed your Kompanie like they did one of my tigers."

"Nein, it was unnervingly quiet. Peaceful, but never the less I'm a little suspicious." Karl replied with a paranoid tone.

"Your starting to sound like me every day now, you know?" Erich replied with a slight chuckle. "How is the 4th PG?" He asked.

"They are doing quite well, Some of them are young though. Some even sixteen or seventeen by the looks of it." Karl replied.

Erich gave a warm smile and gave a proud sigh, "Those boys are young bloods, but they fight just as hard as us old warriors. Some lied about their age to come and defend their country." Erich looked over to three boys about sixteen with an old one around eighteen or nineteen as they divided up a loaf of bread among themselves. "They are so young..." He said with pride, "I tell them no drinking, no smoking, and no brothels. Platoon leaders are like older brothers... Just look at them Karl. I trained them myself before Marlow."

"Realistic war conditions with live ammunition..." Erich's throat began to become tight like a worried father, but faded out as he continued on. "The casualties as a result had to be accepted. I trained them like I myself was trained during the Belkan war and I have never regretted it since. For their Motto I gave them; I am nothing. We are everything."

"I couldn't agree more." Karl said with pride. "Now on to business, Mein Herr. What is our plan of attack?"

Erich turned to him, "Your ready for this war to be over and done, yes?" He asked Karl.

"Jawohl. I want my men to come home in one piece." Karl responded.

"You've already developed a bond with your soldiers..." Erich said with a smile as he put his hand on Karl's shoulder. "You can not even imagine how proud I am of you, Herr Major. Your like the son I never had..." The bright orange flash of the Panzer III N's stubby 75mm's interrupted his heart filled moment and threw dust into the air the small PZ III's.

"Get ready! I wanted fire at the third and second stories of those buildings! Now!" Erich barked to his men as they quickly took up position near some rubble from a fallen store and behind a Tiger that took lead in front of Erich's own King tiger as the roar of seven hundred horse engines came to life as the final push toward the church began. The sporadic sounds of rifle and machine gun fire echoed all around the column as the second and third floor windows of near by apartments became hornets nests of orange and yellow muzzle flashes as the Oseanian defenders fired wildly at anything that remotely looked like an enemy.

"Fire HE rounds into buildings! Make those apartments their graves tigergruppe!" Erich shouted over the radio to his tigers. The long barrels of the tigers rose to meet the Oseanians. The Apartments were only one hundred yards away when the tigers fired in unison and three heavy 88mm shells struck the apartment in a triangle formation and caused rubble to fall near the PZ III's who were firing wildly to there left and right in hopes of killing any enemy troops.

"Into the buildings! First and second platoons come with me! Third and four go across the street into the other buildings! Clear those bastards out!" Karl barked as he lead his men into the buildings on the left side of the street though the broken display window of a shoe store. His platoon split into two groups and began fighting room to room with Submachine guns, Assault rifles, pistols, and grenades. As Karl's squads cleared the houses above, Erich's Tigers pushed on down the street with machine guns hosing down the windows and high explosive shells. The FlakPanzer was a gift from the heavens as the quad 20mm cut through the concrete with out a hassle and split the enemy into a fine paste that splattered the walls...

The fighting was brutal and ever changing as hand to hand combat in apartment and homes turned to long range duels with rifles in the streets and squares. Armored engagements between the tanks of**_ Dinsmark_** and the Oseanian defenders became rare as the heavy tanks became nothing but mobile pillboxes and shields from Machine gun and rifle fire that rained from the roof tops and rising floors of the apartments, stores, and housing. Karl fired his Sturmgewehr on the move as he ducked between the walls to dodge the fire from Oseanian Tommy guns.

"Grenades down the hallway macht schenll!" Karl barked as he unleashed a burst on the enemy as they too jumped from cover to cover to dodge his fire. A stick grenade flew down the hall and sent a deafening shock wave that echoed through the apartment, sending dust into air that gave a brief second for Karl and for others to engage in hand to hand with enemy. Charging into the dust, Karl came face to face with a Oseanian Sargent dressed in olive drab fatigues and side cap. Karl struck the man with the butt of his rifle, knocking him down to his knees, and fired into the mans chest from point blank range.

"Behind you Major!" A grenadier yelled to Major Dael.

The manically screams of desperation filled the air as another attacker came from the dust to attack the Major, knocking his weapon from his hands with swift swing of his rifle. Karl stood his ground and let his rifle fall to the ground as his vision became blurred with anger and adrenaline. The trooper stormed forward for another swing, but Karl was quick and ducked his attack and tackled him to the ground. Karl threw blow after blow into the man's face untill his knuckles were soar, red, and covered in blood from the pulp of the attackers face. He stood over his attack with a blank hallowed gaze as the dust cleared and the bodies of three Oseanians and two PG's (Panzer Grenadiers) laying on the floor... Karl took a deep breath and gave the order to take the two dead PG's back to Apartment HQ for return to the rear and for the rest of the men to push on with him to rejoin with the tigers as they round the street corner toward the church.

"Peter! Set up MG-42's in the windows! I want the church square covered from head to toe!" Karl yelled to a NCO named Peter.

"Jawohl!" Peter replied as his MG teams set up their MG's in the windows.

Karl looked out the windows across the street and called to the other team to do the same. From the window Karl could see the awe striking size of the church itself as its face towered over the apartments like a god among men. He had always admired the church from afar, but now it stood before him in full view. The face of the church was large and imposing, but was strangely warm and welcoming to the soul. A large circle dominated above with beautiful blown glass windows of green, blue, yellow, and red that shined in the light of the moon and stars. The massive spires seemed to make the cathedral look even larger and looked as if they were reaching to the heavens themselves.

Karl looked down to the streets to see the Tigergruppe fanned out with Erich's King Tiger at the lead with the other two to his left and right with the Flakpanzer bringing up the rear. "Fan out and take the Church! Erich yelled from the commanders hatch as he railed the men to go into the Church. Karl rushed toward the stairs and made his way with the men to the church. As he made his way down a flight of stairs he crashed into a solider and fell down the stairs with him with crash as they hit the wall.

"Fuck! Watch yourself you fool!" The solider barked in a familiar tone.

"Ravencroft?" Karl asked in surprise as he picked himself and Ben off of the ground.

"Karl?! Your alive!" Ben said in surprise.

"Of course I am, what did you think I died in this hell?" Karl snapped at Ben as he picked up his rifle and cradled it in his arms. Ben said nothing and Karl stormed ahead with Ben following close behind as they exited the building and crossed the rubble filled street to the large square where the Tigers stood and fired into the building around them to clear out the snipers and Anti tank infantry. The square itself had a road that ran in a perfect square with a park encircling the church with beautiful tree and bright green grass, but the trees were nothing but charred and burning hulks on top of scorched earth and shell holes. Burning hulks of cars and lorries scattered the streets and the park surround the church, as well as isolated fires, but the church itself was untouched, even by the saturation barrage by Belkan guns and rocket launchers.

"_I guess not even the orders of high command couldn't bring those men to strike this church." _Karl thought to himself as he approached Erich's King Tiger.

"Karl! Take this banner!" Erich yelled as he reached into his tank retrieved a large Belkan flag folded into a perfect square. "Treat it with care and respect. This flag use to fly in the wind above this church before the retreat... Bring it home Karl." Erich's voice calm when he spoke of the flag and Karl could hear the devotion in his voice. Karl tucked the flag gently into his coat over his heart and gave a firm salute to his now senior officer.

"We won't fail you sir!" Ben piped up, but Karl ignored him. "I won't fail you sir..." Karl said respectfully as he ran to join his men as they ran into the church.

"Pershings!" Someone yelled as two M26 Pershing tanks appeared from the flanks of the church and fired on the tigers. One shell hit the tiger to Erich's left and blew it to pieces while the other fired and bounced off the thick armor of the King Tiger and knocked out the Flak panzer behind him. The Oseanian infantry swarmed from behind the Pershing's in a massive wave attack, but the four MG-42's of Karl's company ripped into their lines like a hot knife through a melon. Karl and Ben were lucky enough to get inside of the church away from the tank battle. Surprisingly the church was not occupied by the enemy as it's oak wood rows of seating were unscathed by dust or shrapnel. The inside was like nothing Karl had ever seen before with large archways and a ceiling that seemed to reach to the heavens as well. It was a breath taking sight to behold to anyone who was lucky enough, even in a time of war, to see.

"By god... Look at this place Benny..." Karl said as he took his cap off in awe of the beauty before him. The only con about the interior that Karl could think of was the huge scaffolding that lead to the roof above. Karl then lifted his coat to pear at the banner that covered his heart and knew what he must do... He scaled the scaffolding with Ben close behind and from scaffolding he could see a pagan ingrained in the floor with black marble, The black sun wheel, The old Germanic symbol for triumph, life and goodness. The symbol was the unifying symbol for the Christian groups in both Belka and Volkhov and the governments. Ben smiled as he looked down to it, It was the symbol of the Black sun realem, his former home...

* * *

The cold winter air blew to the north toward the Waldreich mountains and it graced the faces of both Karl and Ben genitally as they trekked carefully to the bell tower from the roof. Below them bellowed the black smoke of two destroyed Pershing tanks, two more kill rings for the **_Dinsmark_ **division's Tiger aces. Karl could only focus on the bell tower as he and Ben made their way to the tower.

"Karl... That Symbol... It's... It's from my world..." Ben said as they drew closer to the Bell tower. "I can feel it in my heart and soul... It's charging my power..."

Karl ignored him as they came closer, "How the hell am I going to get up there?" Karl asked himself out loud.

"Karl, you childish fool, acknowledge me damn it!" Ben shouted to the stubbed Karl. "Why should I even give a moment of my time to a defeatist like yourself!?" Karl shouted.

"Because we are in this together! We are both going back to our world together, don't you remember?" Ben exclaimed.

"Of course I do, But I have a duty to my men. I may not be from here, But I will be damned that these good men and people die at the hands of brutes. How can a good man like yourself just stand by a let this war go on? With power like yours you could end the war once and for all." Karl protested.

Ben growled, "The power of the black sun is not meant to be used as a weapon for mortals to unleash on their enemies on a single command!"

"The black sun's power can only be used to defend the meek and helpless, not the strong against the strong! The Esto... Whatever the hell they are! Are strong and so are the Oseanians! They can fight and win their own war, but your too stubbed and your ego is too big to allow you from leaving!" Ben yelled.

Karl grunted and turned around to the bell tower, "Get me up there and we can finish this... We can finish our journey home..."

Karl's voice was apologetic in tone, even though it was reluctant, but Ben knew him well enough to tell that Karl knew he was wrong. But somewhere in his mind he knew that even he himself was wrong to go on his own with out his comrade, after all it was a two man afford to make it through the gate. Ben took Karl by the shoulders and levitated into the air toward the top of the bell tower.

"Didn't know you could do this shit Ben!" Karl shouted in amazement as they flew into the air to the top of the tower to the platform that held flag pole above. "When I'm charged I can do a lot of things!" Ben replied with a chuckle. From the sky, Karl could see all of Sonthofen as the battle rage on below him. He could see the inferno in full unadulterated view as it burned across the city and hills, The massive clouds of black smoke pouring into the air, The search lights scanning the skies, and the light show of AA batteries as they fired into the sky. As Ben and Karl reached the top of the bell tower, Karl looked toward the east to see the two bridges leading off of Old Sonthofen in the distance. Two large archway bridges crossed over the lay river to East New Sonthofen and it's medieval defenses. Toward the north was a large monument of a warrior on horse back with sword in hand on top of a large concrete platform that split the Lay and Güls rivers.

The whole of the battle, of this wounded city, held a stark beauty that left Karl weak in his knees... He looked up toward the empty flag pole as he pulled the Belkan flag from his coat.

"Come Ben," Karl said to Ben, "Let us raise the banner together."

Ben nodded as the two freed the ropes and hooked the flag onto the hooks. Together the two comrades rose the Belkan flag high above the city for all to see... Belkan soldiers below looked up in awe at the banner as the moon light illuminated its beauty as it gracefully danced in the cold winters air. Some men took over searchlights and pointed them at the tower so that even the enemy could see what was happening...

The symbol of the Christian faith, the soul of Belka, and the new heart of Estovakia was liberated...

Cheers could be heard from across the city from under the thunder of guns and explosions...

Even though the two were blinded by the lights, they could see Belkan units advancing at break neck speed in religious zeal to finish the battle. With the holiest site in all of Nord Belka back in their hands, the spirit of the Belkan solider could not be broken and nothing could stop them from finishing off the invaders once and for all.

* * *

Karl and Ben sat on top of the Bell tower and gazed over the hellish backdrop that was Sonthofen. Karl had spent three weeks fighting in this forsaken corner of hell without question, without sleep, and without bathing.

"Ugh, I reek of sweat and dirt." Karl remarked as he took a whiff of his underarm. "Whenever we meet with that Harlan Ellison character, The first thing I'm going to do is take a well deserved bath and wash my uniform. There is no way in hell that I am going to return to my muse looking like I just stepped out of Stalingrad."

Ben laughed and gave a small smile, "Don't worry, I believe that Harlan will be with the order in the city itself. So you can bath, eat, and maybe go to a brothel or two. Just take that wedding ring off of your finger and the girls will be all over you!"

Karl gave a hearty laugh and looked at the ring on his finger, "It's not a wedding ring, But I do feel as if I am tied to Dusk in someway... But a whore house does sound fun!"

Ben could tell Karl was joking about the whores, after all he could tell by the way he spoke that Karl was devoted to that little drummer girl.

Karl gave a sigh as the cold winters wind graced his face as a light flurry began to fall from clouds above, "Peaceful isn't Ben?" Karl remarked as he caught the first snow flake. "Peace in a war zone?" Ben asked him with a chuckle.

"There is always a moment of happiness in times of sorrow. Just as there is beauty in annihilation, There is peace in war. This is one of those moments, my friend." Karl said as he whisked the snow flake out of his hand and back into the wind.

* * *

Karl's radio began to blare with news from all over Sonthofen, "Chemical attack! Chemical attack! Get you NBC gear on now!"

"What the fuck?!" Karl yelled in shock as the sound of aircraft motors thundered in the distance. "Fuck! Those cowards can't take a loss! Ben get us out of here!" Karl ordered Ben as the sound of turbo charged aircraft engines screamed across the sky as four P-38 fighter planes appeared from the clouds, firing their .50 caliber and 20mm guns wildly as they strafed the church.

"Get down!" Ben yelled as a cocky P-38 pilot buzzed by with guns blazing, nearly hitting Karl. Ben was raked with .50 Cal rounds and was launched back three feet to the other side of the platform.

"BEN!" Karl yelled as he ran to his fallen comrade as blood leaked out of his chest and stomach. Ben was coughing blood and could barley answer Karl as he tried in vain to heal his wounds, but he fail...

"Ben! Ben! BEEEEEEEEENNNNNNN!" Karl screamed as his dead friend laid in his arms and drenched in blood. "NNNNOOOOOOO!" Karl screamed to the heavens in anger and sorrow, thrashing his fists against Ben's bloody corpse with tears streaming down his eyes. "It... It can't end like this Ben..."

A green aura caught his attention as he looked down at Ben's body near his heart. Karl placed his hand over the dead mans heart and felt a shock of energy race though his body, "What the fuck?" Karl asked him self as he reached into Ben's coat and retrieved a necklace with the Black sun wheel. The energy became stronger and stronger as Karl pulled it toward himself.

"Maybe if I..." Karl then placed the Wheel under his coat and near his heart...

"AHHHHHHUGH!" Karl screamed as the power of a thousand suns charged though his body. Green energy engulfed his body and ingrained itself into his veins as they turned glowed green with the power of the black sun. Karl threw his hands over his eyes as he broke though the roof of the bell tower and looked at himself in the reflection of the sliver church bell to see his eyes radiating green energy. He looked down at his hands to see a aura of power around them...

The Power of the Black Sun was now his...

"Interception has failed! Chemical raid in T-Minus five minutes All flak guns at the ready!" Erich screamed over the radio as the sound of heavy bombers echoed over the hills to the east.

Karl ran toward the edge of the Bell tower and took off at breath taking speed toward the east... toward the sound of the bombers

* * *

"Echo lead to base, ETA five minutes till pacification of Sonthofen." The lead B-24 Liberator called to Oseanian Bomber Command.

"Copy, are all aircraft accounted for?" The tower responded.

"Yes sir, All ten B-24's are accounted for. P-38 escorted have established air supremacy for the moment of our drop as we speak." The Lead replied.

"HELP! Get this thing off of me! AHHUGH!" A P-38 called over the radio as static filled the radio. "What the hell?" The co-pilot shouted as green fire balls broke though the clouds in the distance.

"Strigon 1! Come in Strigon 1! This is Echo lead, come in! What the hell is going on!?" The lead shouted over the radio. "He's killing us!" One of Strigon team's P-38's called out before he went down as well.

"Who's attacking!?" Echo lead demanded before a fire ball broke though the clouds and obliterated Echo 2 to his left. "Who in the name of..."

* * *

Karl broke through the clouds at full speed, launching attack after attack with green fire from his hands and burning the Oseanian bombers and their deadly payloads of toxic gas. The gunners of the B-24 tried desperately to kill him with burst from their 50's, but Karl was quick and ripped into there planes at angles that only mad men would attack from. Ripping off the wings, cutting the tails off, and even ramming the planes into one another...

Karl was brutal and spared not even the plots who managed to abandon fallen birds... Cutting and burning their chutes proved to be more challenging than killing their birds, but Karl left at least one to tell the tale.

"All birds are knocked out of the sky!" His radio called gleefully. "Who knocked them out!?" Someone else called.

"Who cares!? Attack!" Erich called over the radio.

Karl grin and looked toward the Oseanian's as they tried to hold the bridges from the relentless attack from the 1st and 2nd Iron guard's as they pushed down the bridge under the withering fire from Oseanian Anti-Tank guns, artillery, and machine guns on the east side of the bridge. Grinding his teeth, Karl stormed from the heaven to the center of battle. Hovering in the air, he gazed down with a disgusted and arrogant look on his face as the Oseanian's opened fire on him with everything they had.

He rose his hands into the air as if he was touching the sky and a green wall of power appeared in front of him and the Belkan troops below, Protecting him and his comrades from the relentless fire. With his left hand firmly in the air, Karl's right hand took the impression of a claw and a wave of green fire shot from his hand onto the enemy troops. The Oseanian burned like rats in a house fire and dropped their weapons as they ran away in terror, screaming "demone", Demon in Italian. The Belkan ignored the supernatural sight in front of them and pushed on to chase down the invaders.

Erich looked to the sky, awestruck and speechless at the power of the figure.

"It's Karl... He... He's... He is a god..."

Karl watched from above as the Oseanian ran away in terror from their potions as the Belkan's attack in droves, taking prisoners by the thousands and taking the very last slice of the holy city of Sonthofen. Karl pointed to the retreating droves and called for all to hear-

_**Captured in all you lies, fear is in your eyes**_

_**Creature who's gone insane, your war is in vain**_

_**Trapped in a cage of stone, we'll destroy your home**_

_**Consequence of your action**_

Those words shook the core of every man who dared to raise their hand against him and the Belkan people... Karl could hear the Belkan chant his words as they fought on.

* * *

"The city is ours..." Karl said to himself quietly as he felt the last of his energy dwindle away from him. He was growing weak from the fighting and flew toward the hills away from Sonthofen.

Karl landed softly in a clearing just a mile from the burning hell of Sonthofen, where the grass was soft and green. The soft ground was strangely war and conferrable as he crawled on his hands and knees toward the center of the field. His heavy breaths became calm and light as he reached the center and turned on his back toward the stars and moon... "I... I made it..." He whispered to himself as his eyes became heavy.

Karl, for the first time in three agonizing weeks, fell asleep under the peaceful moon lit sky of North Belka...

* * *

Three figures approached the clearing, two clad in heavy body armor wielding MG-42 machine guns and another dressed in a maroon uniform with long grey streaked hair.

"Madam, Is he alive?" One of the heavy troopers asked the woman in maroon.

She laughed, "Yes, he's just sleeping."

"Should I have Zadornov bring the half-track to our position?" The other asked her.

"At once." She ordered as the two troopers ran out of the clearing.

The woman lifted Karl's head up and took off his dusty and blood spattered crusher cap and ran her finger though is hair. "I see you got my scraf." She said with a smile as the sound of the Half-track rumbled in the distance.

"It's time to bring you home Karl... We need you one last time..."


	13. Chapter 13:Wach und lebendig

_**I hope you all had a grand and glorious christmas and chomping at the bit for a new year, I sure am lol **_

_**Here we are again drawing toward another end of one of my stories, this is the second to the end :) **_

_**The final chapter of Crossing The Rubicon will be up before New Years I promise. **_

_**Happy New Year!**_

_**Authors notes: Harlan Ellison is from Scooby Doo mystery incorporated, The Vulture Battalions are based off of the Jin Roh: The Wolf Brigade version of Protect Gear, The Regular Vulture troops are based loosly off of the First Hydra troops you see in Captain America:The First avenger (The very first part in Norway), The Black Sun wheel is an old Pagan symbol, and this is the Final purley Karl chapter. The next chapter is the Final chapter of CR.  
**_

_**With Love ~Dresner**_

* * *

"How is he doing Doctor?" A black haired woman asked the white clad doctor as he removed the IV from Karl's arm.

"He is fine, just tired and beaten down from all that fight he did in Sonthofen." The doctor replied as he retrieved a clip board and began to jot down notes on Karl's condition.

"Any wounds?" She asked him. The doctor pulled the blanket from Karl's chest to reveal a symbol burned into his skin.

"One one and It seems that when he placed the symbol against his heart, It ingrained itself into his body and in turn giving him all the powers of Ben Ravencroft and the Black sun itself." The Doctor explained as he pointed to the Black sun wheel burned over Karl's heart. "The power surprisingly did not kill him and some how it mixed with the power from those old boots, giving him the abilities he displayed over Sonthofen that night. Your scarf also helped stabilize the energy as well, giving him more control over himself as well as the energy."

The woman smiled, "The women of the Marlin family have always had a history with mystical energy, Sowing a stabilizing spell into the fabric of clothing is second nature."

"Well Madam Marlin, I believe Karl is going to come too anytime now. If you excuse men, I must tend to members of the Order now." The Doctor said as he head for the door and flipping though the pages of his clip board.

"Very well Doctor, have a wonderful new year and have a few drinks for me. The war is over after all." The woman said with a flirtatious grin as the Doctor walked out of the room.

Claudia rolled her eyes as the doctor walked away with even a second glace, "I'm just have bad luck in love, don't I Karl?" She asked the snoozing Karl. Karl was sound asleep in an old army cot with only a torn blanket to keep him warm from the cold. Claudia's personal tent was warm enough and in a stable enough condition to keep the cold winters wind off of them, But Claudia could not help but wish she could do more for her new guest. "First Willard, Then Michael, and now Beau... (Sigh). At least you and my daughter have someone..." She said sadly.

Karl was only wearing the grey field trousers, while the rest of his uniform was folded neatly on top of his old boots she had given to him in Virginia just months before. Between his crusher cap and tunic was the Blue and White scarf she had knit for him. She picked it out of the pile and rapped it around her neck to keep warm and to her surprise to see that it smelled of Karl's brand of tobacco, a sign that he had worn it longer than she expected, but still retained her perfume. Claudia walked over to the sleep solider and sat near him as he slept soundly as the sound of engines echoed outside her tent, "They better have cleared that passage to the gate. I'll be damned to have to crawl though a pile of rubble again just to get back to that fucking gate." Claudia said with an irritated tone. Her eyes began to scan across Karl until she saw the ring on his finger, "Married, Eh? It can't be." She said surprisingly until she looked at the ring carefully to see that it was nothing but a gift ring, a rather expensive and detailed one at that.

"Child, did anyone teach you what finger to put a ring on?" She asked him as she reached for the ring. Karl's hand snatched hers as soon as her warm fingers touched his, "I wouldn't touch that if I were you, my friend." He said with his eyes still closed. Claudia gave a chuckle, "Glad to hear that your among the living once again, Karl."

Karl opened his eyes and was surprised to see the confidant and familiar face of Claudia Marlin dressed in a maroon uniform of some kind sitting next to him with her hand on his. He looked around in surprise to find himself in what looked to be a tent of some kind with a small cot next to his and a modest vanity mirror near by. "Where am I and what are doing here Claudia?" He asked her as she removed her hand from his.

"You are in the Arkbird Copper pit, just three miles from Arkbird, Osean. I, or should I say we, found you in a green field a mile away from Sonthofen." Claudia explained. "The other half of the question will be explained soon enough, How have you enjoyed your scarf?" She asked him.

Karl noticed the light blue and white scarf around Claudia's neck and noted that the scent of french perfume was heavy in the air around him. "He-he, So you were the one that sent me the scarf eh?" He asked her with a long yawn as he leaned up in the cot to stretch his arms.

"Ehhh, maybe." Claudia giggled as she watched Karl stretch and yawn like a sleepy dog after a long nights rest. "Would you like something to eat? Maybe a coffee or two?" Claudia offered as she got up from the cot.

"Cup of coffee will do, Something strong to wake me up. I need all I can get before going back to the front." Karl as he threw his legs over the cot and began to put on his uniform. "Gladly, but you won't be returning to the battlefield Karl."

Karl looked up at Claudia questionably as poked her head out of the tent and called to someone outside to bring them refreshments. "What do you mean I won't be returning to the battlefield? I have a duty to my men."

Claudia gave a proud smile, "You sound just like a true officer. I'm glad to see that the Ravencroft's soul hasn't followed the power into your body as well."

"What are you talking about?" Karl asked in a confused tone as he put on his boots.

She gave a light chuckled as a young pale blonde came through the curtain of the tent with a sliver tray with two coffee cups and a steamy pitcher of fresh coffee. "Ahh Sasha, how are you doing dear?" Claudia asked the blonde. "I'm doing well Madam Marlin, I see comrade Karl is finally awake." The girl said. The girl was Sasha Zadornov, the Volkhovian Major General that gave him his cross.

"Sasha?" Karl asked as she approached him with the tray and began to pour him a cup of coffee. "Privyet comrade major," She said respectfully as she handed him his cup. "How are you feeling?"

"Well rested for the first time in three weeks, but, I must ask. Why are you hear? Should you be with your comrades in the mountains?" Karl asked genuinely unaware of what was going on around him.

Sasha turned to Claudia, "He doesn't know does he?"

"He's been asleep for about two weeks, remember? Of course he doesn't know." Claudia replied as she took a sip of her coffee.

"Two weeks?!" Karl interjected, "I've been asleep for two weeks?! How can this be?!"

Claudia and Sasha chuckled, "Calm down Karl there is nothing to worry about. The war is over." Claudia informed him.

"Da, The Oseanian's surrendered on new years day." Sasha told him. "My comrades struggled greatly through the mountains, but managed to push on through the narrow mountain roads and took the bastards by surprise as they tried to retreat back into their land. Erich's Panzers pushed through the rest of Sonthofen with out resistance, Thanks to you, and our armies encircled the pigs in Arkbird. On new years day, The King and Queen of Osean telegraphed our leaders in Kalingrad, The Estovakian Capital city, and announced there surrender and end of hostilities. Seems that after their failed chemical weapons attack and the retaking of Sonthofen that nothing could stop us from marching right to their capital of Oured." Sasha spoke with a large smile and a chuckle.

"I guess the king and queen had enough fun and decided to leave with their toys intact and tails between their legs!" Karl said with a relived chuckle, but soon turned serious as he began to think of the men of his temporary regiment. "How is the Dinsmark division and the 4th PG's?" He asked in a concerned tone.

"They suffered some losses, but nothing substantial. They are home now and Erich declared that men of the 4th Grenadiers wear your name on a cuff title along with the Dinsmark title." Sasha told him. "Really?" Karl asked her, amazed that their was something named after him. Let alone a regiment!

"They think your dead, but they fought in your name. Some even gave you the nickname of Mithras after the Roman god that legionaries prayed to in times of war. But most of them, call you Carolus Rex after Charles XII of Belka. He was the first Belkan king to defeat my country in the 18th century. Your a national hero in all of Estovakia." Sasha explain.

"Because I rose a flag over a cathedral?" Karl asked in a confused tone as he tried to rap his mind around this whole situation.

Claudia rolled her eyes, "You don't remember a thing do you?" She asked him with a caring smile.

"No I don't..." Karl said as his tone shift toward a more depressed and sad tone. "All I remember was raising the Belkan flag over the church, Ben dying in my arms, and that medallion..." Karl buried his head in his hands as he threw on his tunic. "The medallion!" He said fearfully as he reached toward his heart for it to feel a searing pain over his heart. "Ahhhugh! What the hell is this!?" He shouted in pain as he looked at the image of the Sonnenrod burned into his flesh.

"That is the Black Sun Wheel..." The voice of a man said. A man dressed in all purple with pink under shirt and red ascot walked into the tent with two heavily armored and armed guard behind him. On his face was a pair of heavy framed glasses with green lenses that covered his tried eyes as he looked over to the half clothed Karl. The man's eyes were that of a long and successful writer, full of creativity and wonder, but contained a hint of arrogance, as did his abrasive tone. Karl recognized the tone, but couldn't place the name.

"Who the hell are you?" Karl asked him coldly.

" "Who the hell are you?", Do you have to use profanity to get your point across?!" He asked harshly. Karl chuckled, "I know who you are. Your THE Harlan Ellison, the writer of _"My Fiction is Better"." _Karl reached out his hand to Ellison, who in turn shook his hand firmly. "My name is..."

"Karl Dael, I know who you are. You've have stayed with my Battalion for over two weeks now. I'm sure Madam Marlin and Agent Zvezda have informed you of condition." Ellison interjected. "We were just getting to that part Senior Scribe Ellison." Claudia responded, "Sasha was just telling him of the end of the Continental war."

"Ahhh I see..." Ellison nodded, "Well since I know your not a ill-educated as you appear to be, I can explain. You see Karl we in The Brimstone Society, or the Order as some refer to it as, have observed you and your family for sometime now. The reason for that is because of your families history with in the world of the paranormal. Do you know of your own history?" He explained.

Karl looked at the writer questionably, as if he was speaking in tongue.

Ellison rolled his eyes and opened his mouth to speak, but was interrupted by one of the plated and masked figures.

"SS Ellison, Dig team 8 have broken through the granite neat the Obelisk. They are clearing the remaining rubble as we speak." The figure reported.

"Glorious! In just the nick of time, I might add. How are things on the other side? Have the kids reached the chamber yet?" Ellison asked the guard anxiously.

"The tracker on the dog says they have reached the forth gate." He replied.

"Then we have time for our guest to make his decision, But first we must removed the wool from his eyes and educate him." Ellison said with a sly grin. "Ready a train to Dig team 8 at once."

"Yes sir!" The guard said as he pressed a button on the side of his gas mask.

The two guard wore full body armor that mirrored that of knights of the middle ages with heavy chest, shoulder, forearm, and leg protection. An intimidating gas mask with interrogated night vision covered the face and a classic German steel helmet protected the rest of the skull and added an extra helping of attitude, as did the red lenses of the mask. Underneath the armor was field grey Kevlar jumpsuit for added protection if the platting didn't stop the bullets of any enemy stupid enough to take them on, The belt fed MG-42 would surely change their mind. From what Karl cold see from his cot, the heavy trooper also held a backpack with spare barrels, Ammunition compartment for spare belts, carrying arms for the MG's, and even a long range radio and air filtration unit. The two guards walked outside and only Ellison, Claudia, Sasha, and Karl were left in the tent.

"Now where was I? Ah yes, now I remember..." Ellison continued, "Your family, the Swedish and Germanic Dael's and the Scots-Irish McDaniel's, have since the late 1400's have belong to a organisation older that the Catholic church and maybe older than organized religion. The original Brimstone society was originally founded as a resistance group to a powerful vampire overlord in Romania, but soon after the defeat of such overlord lead to a new role for the society; To protect humanity from the supernatural. Over the ages the society has been resurrected many times over and has branched out to include friendly entities of paranormal descent as well as students of its practices. Witches, Warlocks, Dhampirs, Vampires, Angels, Demons, and anyone is willing to save humanity or protect themselves from destruction..."

"Your family, as well as my own, joined the order in hope of preventing said evil from reeking havoc on our world." Claudia added, "Both of our families come from the mystical side of the spectrum, but It seemed that you and your siblings were not gifted with such power as your father was. So I had to awaken the power from inside of you, those boots are not the reason why you can adapt so quickly to a situation or your aura sense. It is your power that is allowing you to do such things."

"Correct, but I digress, The birth of the 21st century Brimstone Society began as a research division of a corporation known as Gigagen. We took the name of Brimstone after the discovery of the original Society. Soon we found ourselves continuing the work of our ancestors and once again began the process of rebuilding, but with the addition of technology, the influence of Doctor Alexsandr Magnason, and the funding of Gigagen. The Order has found itself as the apex predator of the paranormal world... A title that the Doctor refuses to let go of." Ellison explained further as the sound a horn echoed outside. "Come and we can talk on the way. I'm sure there are more question that need to be answered and once we have answered all of your question we can decide what we are going to do with you, Journeyman." Ellison said ominously as he walked out of the tent.

Karl finished putting on his uniform as Sasha and Claudia waited patiently in front of him. "Karl, you looked troubled. Is there something wrong?" Sasha asked innocently as Karl picked up his grey crusher cap. He looked at her with a troubled smile and gave a heavy sigh, "Besides the fact that my comrade is dead, my family has been apart of a strange cult for centuries that I had not a clue about, and that judging by that hack of a writer's voice I might no see my wonderful muse again. Yes Sasha there is something wrong!" He shouted in a angry and sarcastic tone. "There is no need to be shouting in the presents of ladies, Karl." Claudia said calmly as she rapped the scarf around his neck.

"Especially one that can kill you in an instant..." Claudia said as she button Karl's trench coat and tucked the ends of the scarf into the coat. "Now come one, It's time you come home."

* * *

Karl placed his crusher cap on his head as he stepped outside into the winters breeze to find that he was only a spec with in a massive open pit copper mine with walls so high that the sun couldn't cress its summits. All around the mine were the rusted hulks of steam shovels and machinery scattered around the center of the pit, as well a guard towers and more guards, some lightly armored and clad in black Panzer style uniforms, the alchemist symbol for brimstone on the collar, MP-40 and StG-44 automatic weapons, and mark-less steel helmets and the heavy troopers, patrolled up and around the area. The two heavy trooper awaited near a small mining tram with the harsh Ellison sitting impatiently as the trio walked toward the train. "Come on! We do not have all day now, do we?" He said in a annoyed tone.

Four black uniformed troops formed into line formation and clicked their heels as Karl walked by the, "Guten morgen Herr Major!" They greeted him in German/Belkan and saluted him. Karl saluted back to them and continued on to the train with Claudia and Sasha at the lead. "Who are these men? They look like tank crews, but where are the Panzers?" He asked the two woman in front of him as they took their seats on the train.

"They are the 6th Battalion, Vulture Gruppe, of the special armed detachment of the Brimstone Society. The Wolf Brigade." Claudia informed him as the train lurched forward toward a large tunnel were more Black clad and heavily armed men walked into and out of.

"You see Karl, The Brimstone society is organized in the fashion of a paramilitary organization with its own ranks, uniforms, rules, and leaders, But we are all subordinate to the Doctor. Unlike our predecessors who were mostly freelances and found themselves on the wrong end of society when things turned savage." Ellison explained as they entered the cold and dank tunnel where only the light of lamps proved to be the only reliable source of lighting. "The wolf brigade is made out of six battalions and is lead by its own commanders, but that is for another time. Right now It is time to explain to you your state in this clam."

"Before we go any further in this, can someone please tell me how in the hell did you find me and how did she get here in the first place?" Karl interjected as he pointed at Claudia.

She turned to him with a sympathetic smile, "Were you listing when we told you "We've have watched you for years?", You can't escape a Witch. Especially one that can go into your dreams and track you with ease." She told him with a slightly harsh tone as the train picked up a little speed as it took a turn. "I know of a gate in a town called Gatorsburg on the west coast, It took me awhile to get there and find the gate. But I have enough of a clear reputation with Gigagen to gain immunity from Paladin Coalian and his rogue unit of Stalkers."

"Your complaining about stalkers?" Karl said with sly and sarcastic chuckle.

"Not the kind of stalkers that watch you sleep at night, It's a acronym from the Ukraine that we use for the men of 5th Battalion. A majority of them were recruited from a majority of Military, Mercenary, and Paramilitary units with in the exclusion zone in Ukraine. So we call them by their government name, STALKER." Claudia explained. "Paladin Coalian is the lead of this rogue sec, but I believe my old friend Jericho has settled with him." Claudia's tone turned grave as she wished for a happy ending.

"Madam Marlin came as soon as your powers came to the surface, Karl. But Agent Zvezda, Or Sasha as you know her, has given us updates on your location and status since the second Marlow tank war. Luckily for us, the power of the Black sun is ease to track with out energy scanner..." Ellison explained before Sasha broke in with, "And that we could see you burning from four miles away."

"What do you mean "Burning"?" Karl asked in a concerned tone.

"The power of the Black Sun is that of fire, a pure flame of ones energy both spiritual and physically in your case of the matter." Sasha explained, "In Verusea, the Black sun is a holy symbol of both the christian and pagan beliefs. The Black sun is known through out our world and yours as a symbol of purity, triumph, life, goodness, unity, and centrality. It is said that the world of the Black sun is a place of stunning beauty, surpassing that of The Summerland, and that it draws only the strongest of warriors, leaders, and innovators to it's light so that they will watch over the afterlife. Those who are evil in the mortal world will too be drawn to the promise of power that the Black sun offers, but they will be forgiven and it's light will purify and purge the evil with in them..."

"That is what happen to Ben..." Karl whispered quietly as Sasha placed her hand on his shoulder.

"As Horus shine's above us to show our darkness. The Black sun shows our inter light. God created the Black sun to show us the good with in us and our people." She whispered in his ear as they passed though a dark half of the tunnel. Sasha kissed his cheek just as the light returned and Karl turned to look at her with a smile, but it soon faded as he could only see his muse in the depths of her black eyes.

"The symbols of the Black sun dimensions itself contain a piece of the sun itself when they are forged. The power of the sun is passed through these relics and is given to the wearer of said relics, but, because of the power with in you already with in you, the relic combined itself with your power. In other words, you are one with the Black sun." Claudia explained before Ellison interjected with, "Your now a supernatural being or at least half of one. But your humanity will fad way and hopefully you will not turn out like some people..."

Claudia growled, "Cheap shot Ellison, Why not you say my name when your insulting me? We can not let him go the way of most of our agents, Karl is more than just a weapon."

"We are going to need a weapon if we are going to defeat the Evil Entity if those kids fail..." Ellison mumbled.

"So I'm the cause for the end of the war? Because of the Black sun?" Karl asked with a hope filled voice

"Yes, when you placed the medallion against your heart it merged with you and your soul. Because of your natural desire to do good, the Medallion felt that you were worthy of its power and went about to help you end the hell around you." Claudia told him happily, "We intend, with your willingness, to help us destroy a great evil that threatens our survival as a people. The order is confidant in the kids, but we need a contingency plan just encase they fail.."

"You will be our trump card to defeat the Rogue Anunnaki, The Evil Entity." Ellison said coldly. "The Anunnaki, in a nut shell, are a race of supernatural beings who take the form of talking animals."

Karl chuckled, "So you want me to be a super weapon against some kind of evil talking mongrel?"

"You can say that..." Claudia said lightly as the tunnel expanded into a massive cavern where men and machines cleared a path of rubble bellow. Huge stalactites hung menacingly from the ceiling and a huge pit separated the cliff side railway and the dig sit.

"Does it have an army?" Karl asked in a surprisingly positive and yearning voice that sent a shiver down Claudia's spine.

Ellison smiled, "Yes, a large one of feral anunnaki." Ellison could see Karl's eyes shift from light green to the bright teal of the black sun energy.

"Do I get to return home to my muse?" Karl asked as his eyes shift back to normal. Ellison could wipe the grin from his face and nodded, "Yes, but only if you chose to."

The train braked lightly as the narrow cliff side ended at the dig site where the final remains of the rubble was pushed aside by heavy equipment. The finally wall had been broken and in a small cave stood a Iron Obelisk ingrained with the black sun on its faces. The four exited the train with Karl running in the lead until Claudia stepped in front of him with a look of concern and worry. "Karl, You must know that you have draw backs as well..."

"I don't care, I want to end this and end this now. I'll figure out my cons once I destroy this mongrel." Karl said coldly as his eyes glowed teal and pushed her aside. Claudia was shock at his reply and screamed to him, "IF YOU USE YOUR POWER HEAVILY YOU'LL DIE!"

Karl ignored her and continued on with vulture troops gathered around the him and the others as they all gazed at the Iron Obelisk as it glimmered in the light of the dig sites spot lights, as did the german weapons, armor, and sliver tabs of Vulture battalion. All was quiet with only the sound of faint breaths and light droplets of water falling from the stalactite. "It almost over..." Karl said as he fell to his knees in relief as he stared at the Obelisk.

The Black Sun wheels on the Obelisk glowed bright teal and a large teal Black sun wheel appeared at the entrance of its tomb. The Sun wheel formed into a portal...

"Who opened the gate?!" Ellison demanded as Claudia ordered the Vulture troops to readied their weapons on the portal. "It has to be them..." Claudia whispered as the echoing of jackboots came from the portal...

A tall, muscular, and handsome man dressed in a crimson red suit with slicked back jet black hair walked through the portal, Laughing and clapping his hands as he came into full view. "Ahhh yes, wonderful my dear wonderful!" He cackled as Kalash brandishing troops in modern combat gear followed up behind him with guns trained on everyone and everything. "STALKERS... Coelian, what are you doing here!? Your orders are to be in Crystal Cove..." Ellison protested, but Coelian rose his hand for him to silence.

"My orders are only secondary... I am here to capture and execute the traitor Marlin..." He said coldly as he looked down at Karl as he sat on the ground on his knees. "Who is this? Is this the mutt you pumped up with our power?" He yelled harshly. Karl said nothing as the gloaming figure of Coelian knelled in front of him.

"I know you, Your that roadie we've watched for years now. How does it feel to have true power inside of you? The power of the gods dwelling with in that human shell..." Coelian said menacingly with a cold sarcastic voice. "I only have one question for you Karl... Do you think your going to go back to your life after all of this?"

Karl said nothing.

"Your a monster now, a figure of pure terror and a weapon for Brimstone to wield against its enemies. Your little fuck puppet drummer is nothing to you now, She is nothing to a being of raw power..." Coalian's insolence tore into the very depths of Karl's heart and soul...

Karl's eyes turned into teal orbs and a ominous snarl bellowed from the depths of soul...

Without hesitation or folly, Karl's gaze turned to Coalian and his arm broke through the man's chest through the other side, clutching the bottom half of the man's spine in his blood soaked hand. The stalkers were frozen with fear and could not respond as their leader bleed to death in front of them. "You shouldn't have said that, my friend..." Karl whispered to Coalian as he laid on the ground in a river of blood.

"STALKERS, by the order of Brimstone stand down!" Ellison called to the frozen stalkers as they looked on in terror as Karl rose his head toward them. "Down Karl! Cease and desist!" Claudia and Sasha yelled to Karl as they rushed to stop him from anything further. Sasha made it to him first and plead for him to calm down before it became worse.

"STOP! STOP KARL! STOP!" She yelled to him as she looked into the teal orbs that were his eyes. "Please stop! Please!" Sasha begged.

Karl looked once again to the deep eyes of Sasha, but didn't see the Volkhovian duplicate... He saw Muffy ... He saw Dusk... A terrified and scared little drummer girl with tear filled eyes as the power crazed animal inside of him eyed her like a hungry predator...

Karl dropped the remains of Coelian's spine and his eyes returned to normal... "I'm sorry Dusk..." He whispered as he rapped his arms around Sasha as he sobbed, But this brief deliverance from madness was cut short as the portal cracked with lighting and angry howls echoed through out the mine.

"We haven't much time! They have fail! I Repeat! The kids have failed! Operation Watchdog is now in effect!" Claudia shouted as she ordered the Vulture and Stalker troops into the portal. "I want defensive positions around the city of Gatorsburg as soon as you land! No fuck ups!" Claudia barked like a crazed dog.

"I'll stay and monitor the situation from here Madam Marlin!" Ellison yelled to Claudia, "Sasha, I need you to stay with me!"

Sasha kissed Karl before running to Scribe Ellison and Karl shaped up before taking a stance. Claudia joined Karl by his side one last time, "Are you ready?"

Karl looked at her with a cold and confidant grin, "I'm always ready always."


	14. Chapter 14: Live to Forget

_**The final chapter of CR is complete... I want to Thank everyone who read my story and inspired me to continue on.**_

_**I wish everyone a Happy and Safe New Year!**_

_**2014 is going to be a good year, I can feel it!**_

_**With Love ~Dresner**_

* * *

The Hex girls continued on with their lives as normal after that faithful day at Tranquil Heights and the dramatic reunion with Thorn's long lost mother, Claudia. Though the meeting was nothing that Thorn expected it to be, she found closure in the madness and gun fire of that day. She now knew who her mother was and found peace with in herself knowing that her mother was there with her through out her life, even though it was from afar. Thorn realized that she was nothing less than a spitting image of her mother in almost every way and soon her stubbornness and motherly feelings became a little stronger as the days went on. There was only one con about the whole meeting with her mother and that was the deceitfulness of her father, even though it was in a good cause.

Thorn and Her sister then went on tour one more time, but this time they wouldn't return to Oakhaven or to her father. She was done with her father and went on to pursue the dream that Luna, Dusk, and Herself dreamed of since they were children; To be the greatest rock band the world had ever seen.

They soon went on across America and Canada for another tour with breath of fresh air that the fans and tabloids marked as "A new age for the Hex girls."

Going on with Luna's Neo-Classic look and Red, Black, and White color scheme, Thorn updated her look with a thigh-high black dress with a white blouse underneath, a white frilly ascot, black platform maryjanes, and red knee high socks. Her hair received an update as well with clean cut bangs, shoulders length, with red highlights. Dusk took toward a Cyber goth style with goggles, a red ripped long sleeve shirt under a black and white romper with buckles, revealing her midriff, short black shorts, red ripped thigh high stockings, and knee high boots with buckles on them that Karl bought for her years ago. She changed her make up as well for purple eye shadow, red lipstick, and red streaks in her pig tails.

Dusk became a little more proactive with the band and easy going as time went on, but she still had her moments. Minor moments like snapping on there former song writer, who is serving time for attempted murder and kidnapping dressed as a phantom. But some were more personal, like taking long walks by herself with her hair down so no one would notice her or going to dance clubs just to forget everything around her. Thorn and Luna would have to pull her out each time before she began to drink and start screaming her name out to everyone and before anything crazy would happen to her. They worried that she was becoming to attached to the memory of Karl, as they all were, but Thorn insisted that they forget the past and look forward to the future. Luna was still in a depressing rut, even after finding out the truth about her involvement in the Amsel affair.

After the Phantom incident, They put their money together from the Crystal Cover Terror Dome gig and bought a house of their own in Crystal Cover. Thorn refused to go back to Oakhaven and her sisters were a little skeptical at first, but soon found that living on their own was better than living on a bus. A few gigs here and there paid the rent kept the dream alive, even a rich Arab sheikh invited them to perform on his yacht for over four million in cash, but was soon cut short after their old friends in Mystery Inc need help defeating a bunch of Ska-Zombie's in a band battle and unwittingly aided them in a quest for some kind of treasure. The girls began another tour...

* * *

The scent of new car smell was still heavy in the seats and beds of the Hex girl's new tour bus, a gift from the Sheikh for all their troubles. Thorn, Dusk, and Luna were busy watching _Van Hellsing_ to pass the time. James turned up the radio to drown out the fake screams from the girls as he drove by a sign with the name Gatorsburg... "Welcome to Gatorsburg, Population three." James read as the sign passed by as they crossed a piss colored river and entered the dead city of Gatorsburg. Dusk looked outside to see a town surrounded by dead trees, empty streets fulled of swamp water, Willow trees and kudzu covering the destroyed shacks, and endless rows of derelict buildings with gator drawings at every turn.

"Ugh, reminds me of Louisiana." Dusk groaned as she laid back down on the couch. "At least we won't meet the devil this time around." Thorn said jokingly in her best fake Louisianian drawl, sounding almost like her mother in someways. The girls laughed as James pulled into a near by service station. "Well girls, we're going to need to fill up if we are going to make it to San Diego." James announced to the girls as he exited the tour bus.

"Didn't the gang bust a group of smugglers here?" Thorn asked as the girls gazed on at the dark beauty of the abandon town.

"I think so, I think shaggy mentioned something about alligator people or reptilians." Luna mentioned with a slight smile as she said Shaggy's name.

"Luna, you've been crushing on that hippy since you met him in Oakhaven." Dusk replied with a snicker. Luna rolled her eyes and kicked Dusk off of the couch. "If you can date a backwoods hick from Alabama, then I can dream about a hippy with a stomach as large as the ocean and heart twice that." Luna said with a happy grin and a chuckle. Thorn laughed and continued looking over the town from the window as Luna and Dusk fought about love. She wasn't concerned, after all she had James, the music, and the love of her mother. For her whole life she didn't know who her mother was, but her father did... Closure was all she needed and that is what she found in that asylum.

"Wow! Check out that statue!" Thorn exclaimed as she noticed the huge gator cluster statue in the middle of town.

As the girls gazed at the twisted statue, James was busy looking for a pump attendant to fill the fuel tank for him. The sound of clashing thunder and lighting roared overhead and heavy clouds of red and black gathered in the distance, over crystal cover. "Some storm, that damned place even has weird weather as well as people!" James laughed to himself as he looked on for an attendant.

"That's strange," Luna said as the thunder caught her attention. "Those clouds are blood red..."

"Is it suppose to rain today?" Thorn asked her sister as she looked at the clouds as well.

"Those aren't rain clouds..." Dusk said gravely as her eyes radiated with fear as a loud demonic cackling pierced the sky and echoed all around them. Green streaks of light flew across the sky and crashed around the dead city.

Growling and screeching broke the silence of the town around them and through the thick brush the girls could see soul shattering green eyes drawing closer and closer. The girls instants kicked in as fear and adrenaline raced through their bodies and screamed to James, "Get in the bus!"

James ran into the bus, fearful that the girls were in danger. "What's going girls!?" He shouted as he stepped into the bus as a loud crash rocked the bus from side to side. Loud heavy foot steps could be heard on the roof of the bus and the girls and James backed away toward the rear of the bus, but the foot steps stopped. For a brief moment everything was silent...

The girls hearts pounded in their chests like war drums...

A black stiletto loomed over drivers windscreen with green glowing like spotlights in the darkness. Lighting struck near by and illuminated the night to reveal a grotesque bird man like figure dressed in Egyptian slave rags hanging up side down looking with hungry eyes into the bus.

The girls let out deafening high pitched screams that angered the beast who in turn open his jaws to reveal rows of razor sharp fangs to let out a screech louder than their screams that cracked the glass of the wind screen, But something caught Dusk's eye in the distance...

A large flash appeared from the second floor of some kind of motel to the north and suddenly the creatures blood painted the wind screen and it's body fell from the roof to the ground with a massive thud, followed by a loud crack. "What the?!" The girls and James screamed as more thunderous sounds of what appeared to be gun fire chattering all around them.

* * *

_**Earlier...**_

Karl and Claudia stepped out of the portal in a town discarded by history and reclaimed by mother nature in the same turn. All around them were graves, a sigh that the gate was in a cemetery, and the ever present sight of the weeping willow tree and the stench of alligators, a sigh that they were near a swamp. It was dark and fog surround them making visibility near zero. Behind them was companies worth of Modern Special Forces styled Stalkers and the Vulture shock troops charging forward and taking up positions until Claudia or Karl said other wise.

"Where are we Claudia?" Karl asked Claudia coldly as he popped his knuckles in anticipation.

"Gatorsburg, an old gator farm town that died out once they ran out of gators to skin. We're three miles from Crystal Cover, but we must make hast after we take the town." Claudia said as she reached into her coat and retrieved a Custom polished sliver C-96 broomhandle pistol. "Take this, It's a gift from me to you. It's good to have you on our side." She said, handing the pistol to him

"Who said I was on your side?" Karl questioned her as he took the Mauser pistol.

"Who said you haven't been on our side this whole time, Eh Major?" Claudia said with a smirk as Karl inspected this pistol and handed him a few magazines to go with his new sidearm. "Iron bullets blessed by Celtic druids and Catholic Bishop's, Seems like your style eh?" Claudia said as she stepped on top of a gator styled tombstone.

"Alright men!" Claudia called to the company, "We are to move a click west toward the old inn just up the road. I want the Stalkers to take lead and recon the town for any hostile entities. Vulture troops, I want the Solothurn set up on the second floor and MG-42's on the first to give them cover. Light troops I want you to take up positions in the town after the Stalkers have cleared it. Any question!?" Claudia shouted to the men. The men shook their head and readied their weapons.

"MOVE OUT!" Claudia shouted as the Stalkers charged into the fog with Vulture troops bring up the rear. Karl and Claudia followed suit with the Vultures as they exited the cemetery and began a long walk toward town. "So tell me Claudia, where did you find the Stormtroopers?" Karl asked as hr stuffed the Mauser pistol into his belt.

"We recruited them from Belka and Volkhov." Claudia explained. "We came to Verusea on accident if you can believe that. Research teams in Germany were taking readings on a place called "The Henge" on the bases of discovering the purpose for the site itself, as well as clues to the legendary Die Glock. I was their with the Sorceress detachment of the Wolf brigade and we found that if we charged the structure with our energy, it would open a portal to another world. In some cases we found ourselves in contact with an world called "The Ghost Zone", but the most interesting was the parallel dimension of earth. The earth that we encounter mirrored our world to the letter, but with different continents and parallel cultures. One of those continents is Verusea, the very continent that you and Ben journeyed across. We sent Scribe Ellison after his time at Darrow university was over and began building a Brimstone chapter in Verusea to keep the paranormal at rest, but it seems that in that world they have made piece with spirits or their faith in the Black Sun as kept the creeping creatures away. Either way, It proved to be nothing but a useless expenditure."

"We contacted the Doctor and he ordered that we begin looking for anything worth taking back to our world, but the power of a Sorceress is limited and the strength of the henge itself proved to be problematic. Three witches died as batteries for that damn man made gate to the unknown, So we abandon it. Luckily Scribe Ellison brought a handful of troops and a Witch to communicate with us here in our world. Ellison built the Vulture Battalion from the ground up and even created an arms manufacturing industries known as "_Grunder Industries_" and "_Belkan __Waffen- und Munitionsfabriken"_ or BWM to supple and fund the Brimstone society in Verusea, as well as design cutting edge weapons and armor like the StG-45M Assault Rifle, Vampir Inferred systems, and Kampfküriss Typ 92 Ausf.V "Helghast" Power Armor." Claudia pointed out to the weapons and gear on the Heavy Vulture Troops. "Mostly the Shocktroopers of Vulture Battlaion find themselves in a more basic role of guard duty and fighting off bandits in and around the copper mine. But, If I remember correctly, the heavy troops saw action against Oseanian troops near Arkbrid. Not sure though."

"They look intimidating, that's for sure. An MG-42 is a forced to be feared, but a fire team of five or six of them each held by one of those guys must be a punishment to an enemy..." Karl said with admiration as he gazed like an awestruck child at the Shocktroops and their weapons. Some of the Shocktroops were scanning the woods with their integrated air filtration and night vision masks with their red spectacles glowing in the darkness of the swamp. The black armor, black uniforms, futuristic German weapons, and the soul shattering intimidation factor of the mask combined with the Stahlhelm screamed attitude, something that Karl became intoxicated with. A part of him yearned to be a Vulture trooper, Another scoffed at the idea and reassured him that the power of the Black sun was enough, but another side disapproved of the latter and only wanted to come home safely and to return to normal.

Two lighter troops in Panzer Black uniforms with MP-40 SMG's hanging from their sides walked by at a brisk pace with a large cannon like rifle on their shoulders with another man close behind with a large backpack and carrying two ammo boxes marked with "S-18/100 Special". "A 20mm Anti-Tank Rifle?" Karl asked in a rather surprised and impressed voice, "Is it 1940? Are we invading France Frau Marlin?" Karl asked in a fake German accent with a chuckle.

"What we are going to face is going to need more than just a handful of storm troopers, a witch, a Schwartz guard, and a Solothurn." Claudia replied. Karl smirked at the title of "Schwartz Guard" (Black guard).

They approached a plantation style inn called "The drowse gator" with a broken sigh that buzzed uncontrollably. The sound of old player piano sang in the night as the marching column of troops found themselves at its front door. Karl and Claudia entered the Inn first with Vulture troops swarming in behind them to take up there positions.

"WE AIN'T GOT NO ROOMS!" The howl of a old hag protested as the men rushed up the stairs. Karl gazed over to the right toward the sound of the piano to see an ugly woman in a raggedy pink dress eyeing the black uniformed men lustfully.

"I do not care." Karl said coldly, stonewalling the woman who gave him a scowl. "Leave this place madam, Things are about to get a little messy." Karl gave an unnerving chuckle.

"I SAID..." The woman yelled until the Karl approached her and stuffed the barrel of his Mauser pistol in her face. "And I said leave this place..." Karl told her in a firm, yet terrifyingly cold, tone as he slowly cocked the hammer of the pistol. "Am I clear, Ma'am?"

She nodded and called to her Son and Brother to pack their things, But they were soon thrown out by gunpoint by Black shirted Vulture troops who in turn threw them into the brothers tow truck and sent them on their way.

"Rather forceful, Eh Karl?" Claudia said with her brow raised as Karl clutched the pistol firmly in his hand and biting his lip in ecstasy. "Did you... Enjoy that little moment of yours?" She asked critically.

Karl looked at her with a sick little smile, "Now Now Madam Marlin, I was respectful."

"Major!" A heavy trooper called to Karl. "Major Dael, STALKER's report an oncoming vehicle of some kind! What are our orders?"

Karl thought to himself for a moment, "Let them come in... If their hostile we can at least give them a proper welcome..."

Karl turned toward the stares to see the Solothurn team rushing up the stairs to the second floor balcony and MG teams preparing their weapons in the other rooms. A large smile covered his face from end to end and his grip became tighter and tighter on his pistol with every second, Karl wanted this fight and Claudia could sense it on him as it radiated off of his aura.

"Jawohl!" The trooper replied as he reported back to the Stalkers on his radio.

Karl lead Claudia up the stairs to the balcony to check on the Solothurn. Claudia wasn't as interested in the fight as Karl was and would have much rather stayed down stairs with the gator decor or played a song for the men on the piano, But Karl was beginning to worry her. She didn't expect him to be at ease with his powers so quickly, nor did she expect for him to be so... Sadistic and bloodthirsty... "He would have pulled the trigger on that hag..." Claudia thought to herself. "What stopped him from it is the next question..."

Thundering through the halls and out the door to the balcony where the Solothurn team were calibrating the range for the gun. The two ammo boxes and Back pack were opened to revile large ten round magazines for large gun and one of the men, an officer, was looking through the lenses of a "Scissor Scope" Range finder/Binoculars, while the other's readied the weapon. The officer manning the ranger finder turned and saluted Karl and Claudia, "Madam Marlin, The 20mm is ready for action we are just now getting it ranged in."

"What type of shell are you firing Herr lieutenant?" Karl interjected as he reached for one of the magazines for the gun.

"20x105mmB Ausf.H Tungsten and sliver rounds, Blessed by the Belkan church and blessed with holy water. We also have regular Armor piercing and High explosive rounds just in case." The Officer reported. "Grand..." Karl said with a smirk as he walked over to pear into the ranger finder. Through the scope he could see a massive statue in the center of town and abandon and derelict buildings all around town. In the distance came the white headlights of a incoming vehicle.

"Lieutenant, do we engage?" The gunner asked as her aimed the Solothurn toward the vehicle.

"Nein, Hold fire and let it pass. If their armed, then fire at will..." Karl said coldly as the large bus pulled into the abandon service station.

Karl let out a low "hmmm" as he pulled his face away from the scope. Beyond the horizon were blood red clouds gathering over a near by city with thunder and lightening challenging each other for dominates of the sky. Karl's eyes briefly glowed with the teal energy of the Sonnenrod as he gave a brief smile, "Storms a brewing, Real blitzkrieg eh?" He said in a low and confidant tone that even made the Solothurn crew shiver a little.

"Sir, Stalkers report that the bus is apart of something called the "Hex girls"." The officer reported from his hand radio.

Karl rose his brow and his demeanor changed from hard and heartless to compassionate and worried, "Was?(What? in German)" He asked in a urgent tone.

"The girls! What the fuck are they doing here?!" Karl shouted.

"They must be on tour..." Claudia was stopped mid-sentence and gaze into the sky. Balls of green light few from the clouds and crashed into the ground around the city. "Its... Its begun..." Claudia said fearfully.

Karl looked into the sky as more of the green orbs rained down from the blood clouds like katyusha rockets, "Hmhm, A December snow is upon us..." Karl said coldly as he stared into the sky. "On such a warm day none the less..."

He turned his attention toward the town where the Anunnaki minions began throwing themselves against the tour bus and crawled on top of its roof...

"FIRE!" Karl yelled just before the Solothurn's massive round flew out of the gun, it's shock wave blowing back his coat tails.

"Angriff! (ATTACK!)" He shouted as he leaped off of the second floor and charged at break neck speed toward the town with pistol and knife in hand.

* * *

The girls could comprehend what was going as machine gun fire bounced off of the bus and the ground. The sickening roar of demonic beasts pieced the air, as did the thunder of a massive gun in the distance. The beasts broke through the windows and were quickly mowed down by the fire.

"IT'S A FUCKING WAR ZONE!" Dusk shouted as another cannon shot echoed through the air and ripped to pieces two of the beasts.

"Get to the back!" James yelled as he pulled the girls toward their room at the back of the bus. An anunnaki broke through the back of the bus, snatched James in it's scaly arms, and ran off toward crystal cove. "JAMES!" Thorn screamed in terror as two more anunnaki beasts broke through the windows with their jaws drooling with anticipation.

"GET AWAY!" The girls screamed as they came closer and closer. Their claws dripping with blood, gun shot wounds raking their chests, and eyes void of anything but mindless hunger and hate. The girls closed their eyes, knowing that it was the end...

Dusk kept her eyes opened, unable to close her eyes... She wanted those beasts to see her eyes as they killed her, to haunt them for the rest of their retched exsistance...

Dusk had excepted her fate... She wasn't going to die with fear... She was going to die defiantly...

Suddenly the windows shattered entirely and the beasts were torn to pieces by a melee of teal energy and swings from a black coated figure with a sliver sidearm. The black coated figure ripped the first beast in two with a single trust from his energy charged fist and the second was decapitated with a swing of a large blade. The movements were timed and flawless, cold and calculated, without any sign of wasted energy. Dusk took a glimpse at his eyes to see that there were only burning orbs of teal, but beyond that she could see a familiar figure...

The bodies of the beasts fell to the ground in tatters with blood soaking everything but the girls and the coated figure. Thorn and Luna opened there eyes to see Dusk staring intensely at a black coated figure with his back turned toward them, his blood soaked blade and sliver pistol shining brightly in the flashing lightening.

"It's him... I know it is..." Dusk said in a whisper as she stepped slowly toward the figure. Her heart pounded and burned with the yearning desire to see him after all these months...

"Karl?" She asked as she reached out to his shoulder.

The figure snapped around quickly with the heavy pistol pointed toward her sisters and he fired without hesitation. Dusk screamed in terror as she looked toward her sister, in fear that this figure murdered them in cold blood... But Thorn and Luna were unscathed...

Behind them were two dead Anunnaki minions raked with gun shots...

Dusk turned back to see the figure was dressed in a clean grey german style uniform with jackboots, black trench coat, a blue and white checkerboard scarf, and a peaked cap like army officer would wear. The face of the figure was familiar, as was the Goat-T on his face. It was him...

"Karl!" Dusk screamed in excitement, rapping herself around him and pressing her lips against his warmly. Karl returned the kiss and the two love birds reunited with a long embrace. The other sisters rushed to him and hugged him tightly... They were saved...

"Girls, It isn't save here." Karl said calmly as he put away his gun and blade.

"Major! The beasts are retreating! haha!" One of the men called from the outside.

Dusk looked at him questionably, "Major?"

Karl nodded, "Gutt! Set up defenses around the town, They might come back again!" Karl shouted as the site of more stalkers and vulture troops took a lot of pressure off of his shoulders.

"Oooh, I've got a solider boy. Watch it girls!" Dusk said flirtatiously as she locked lips with Karl one more time.

Karl chuckled and lead the girls out of the bus, toward the Inn where the HQ was set up. He informed them on everything, but left out a few details about Brimstone. The girls didn't care, they only cared that he was alive and well. But Thorn was still torn up about James...

They stood in front of the Inn where Claudia came to reunite herself with her daughter one last time. The girls were shocked and she told them how she lived through the attack by the rogue's. Karl raised his brow, but shrugged it off. "It's a long story..." Claudia told him.

"Something is happening in Crystal Cove! A vortex is opening!" One of the men called.

"What the hell is going on!?" Claudia called out to the man.

"SHIT! GET DOWN! EMISSION!" He screamed as a massive ball of light appeared in the distance, sending a shock wave across the land.

Karl and Claudia thought quickly, but It was to late...

Karl rapped Luna and Dusk in his armed and turned his back to the shock wave in a vain attempt to protect them. Claudia did the same to Thorn as a massive ball of light engulfed the land around them...

* * *

Dusk could not comprehend any of the thoughts that ran though her mind as the tour bus pulled away from Gatorsburg. The hellish memories of the past were gone, as was the images of the demonic hound like creatures that attacked her and her sisters, The gun toting men in armored suits, and the figure who gave everything to save them. They did not remember a thing and acted as if everything was normal.

When she asked if Thorn remembered Claudia, she shook her head and asked "Who is that?" The same reply came from Luna.

Dusk was alone once again...

"He came just in time..." She whispered to herself as she sat on her bed holding Karl's cap in hand. It was the only thing that remained of him after the explosion. Then he was gone and all of reality was changed to something different and, surprisingly, positive, Luna was back to semi normal and Thorn was a little bit stronger in heart and mind than she use to be.

And for herself?

Dusk was happy, for the first time since she met Karl over a year ago in that run down backwoods service station in rural New York. She loved him more than anything and she knew, as did her sisters, that he was the one for her and she prayed that one day he would return.

"If he didn't die the first time, he must still be alive..." She said to herself as a tear fell from her face and landed on one of the sliver buttons of the cap. Dusk stood up and placed the cap on her shelf next to her bed. "I'll be waiting Klokateer, you know I will." She said with a loving smile as she turned to look out the large window out the back of the bus. The bus took a sharp turn past some hills and something caught her eye.

Atop one of the hills stood two figures, one clad in the very black trench coat that Karl wore when he came back from the other world.

"Could it be?" Dusk said as the bus rounded the corner. "It couldn't be..."

* * *

"You miss her already, eh?" Claudia asked Karl. Karl ignored the question and watched as the red, black, and pink tour bus rounded the corner and into the unknown. Claudia looked at him with sympathetic eyes as the stone like figure that Karl became began to tear up, yet his express remained blank. War hardened him, The black sun changed him, and forged the man that stood before her. Love, Loss, Hatred, Pain, and Suffering were the tools made him who he was. Through out his life he had become acquainted with each one, even sharing a bed or two with one of them. Yet it never corrupted him or broke him...

"What happened Claudia?" He asked her as a warm coastal breeze swept across their faces.

"The evil entity of Crystal Cove is destroyed, thank god, and everything that it effected was erased from existence." Claudia explained, "We remember because of our power. Everyone else won't remember a thing..."

"Does this mean I can go back to to my life as a roadie?" Karl asked innocently.

"No... They don't remember you. You were apart of the event as much as anyone, both of us were. The darkness that we cast upon their minds has been erased." She replied gravely.

"In other words its..."

"Like we never existed..." The two said in tandem.

Karl turned around and began to descend the hill, but Claudia placed her hand on his shoulder and asked him who would he turn to.

"I'm not sure, but I'll find away..." He replied. "No, not anymore Karl." Claudia protested as he turned to face her. She reached into his pocket and pulled out a pendent of The Brimstone Society and placed it in his hand. "You need a home Karl... Your not a solitary creature, you enjoy it, but, you will never love it. Come home, come with me, come to Brimstone." She said as she held Karl's hand.

Claudia looked deep into the eyes of the man that wipe an entire army off of the face of the earth with out a second thought, the man that traveled across universes for a young girl, the man that reminded her of her own humanity and drove her to make up with her daughter. She could see into his eyes and could almost relive all the pain, the bloodshed, and hell that Karl had gone though and could share his pain as if it was her own.

"Tell me Karl, where are you going?" She asked him.

Karl took one last deep breath of the coastal air before giving a solemn nod.

"Home..."


End file.
